ALL HAIL wrote:Jajwanda wrote:If there's a place to add veteran free agents now it's in amnesty cuts. It's not exactly easy to find guys willing to play behind an injury only rotation (no playing time if there are no injuries). Caracter may get lucky and stay although I think they'll force him to play for about 400k and decline his team option.
After that they'll probably look to add a Jeff Foster.
What the bench is missing is a second shooter, one that can finish games with Kobe as well as perhaps even produce a little of his own offense. Right now Matt Barnes/Ebanks are repetitive. We don't have a true Kobe-backup just yet and you can't count on Morris-Goudelock.
Good, sound, reasonable post Jajwanda.
Although I'm not exactly sure what you mean by "second" shooter. "Second" implies that we have a first shooter and I don't know who that might be.
I think you are either trying to say we need a second scorer off the bench who can shoot or that we need a second scorer off the bench who can shoot AND an additional ("second") shooter.
I agree with both, but I really agree with the latter.
Not only do the Lakers need a second "real" scorer/shooter off the bench, they also should (ideally) add yet another shooter/scorer to backup Artest (preferably one who can guard both SGs and SFs).
I know it's almost sacrilegious to talk about Matt Barnes around here, but, although I like him as a player, I think we could ideally use more of a knock down shooter at his position ... albeit a knock down shooter that is not a complete liability on defense.
Delonte West is the perfect guy for what you are describing as the second scorer/shooter off the bench ... he's extremely ideal because he is a true combo guard in that he can play both guard positions well on offense and defense ... great shooter, great defender ... and he might come very cheap.
If Barnes' spot somehow opens up (it more than likely will not), as much as I like Ebanks, I prefer a guy like Sasha Pavlovic because he could be that "second" shooter off the bench (the first being Delonte West) and his defense when motivated by his coach can be just as good as Barnes. Pavlovic can also swing between SF and SG, which is a bonus if the rotation were to tighten up and/or injury.
Jeff Foster would be a great pickup, but why not Troy Murphy who is an equal or better rebounder and a remarkable shooter as well (although Foster is a better defender).
But either way, it should be fine. We can only hope that the fourth and fifth bigs (probably Caracter and a guy like Foster or Murphy) are as sound and effective as Powell and Mbenga were.
We just need two guys that can seamlessly fill in when someone goes down. This is another reason I prefer Murphy because even if one of Odom or Gasol or Bynum become injured we still woulld have some bigman offense coming off the bench. But, I do realize you could argue that Caracter could take on that role.
The problem, like you said, in getting anyone that is halfway good, is that they would have to come knowing full well that they will get a lot of DNP-CDs, I think most guys with the expereince of Foster and Murphy want to play everynight ... we'll see.
Just my two, err three cents.
When I say second shooter I'm saying that I have some faith in Goudelock to make it based on the lack of any impressive competition. Either him or Goudelock will help spread the floor. What they need is for one of the other perimeter positions to be filled with a penetrator and the other one with another knock-down shooter.
Finding a good shooter with decent defense that can play SG/SF is not that hard. I would suggest Rasual Butler.
I would trade Matt Barnes for Keyon Dooling.
Back up unit:
PG- Dooling (can switch onto some SGs and help Fisher, plus create off the P and R), Morris
SG- Fisher, Goudelock (a younger more dynamic FIsher)
SF- Butler, Ebanks (Can do almost everything Barnes does)
I like Troy Murphy, but I would like a real C backup even more so than him.
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