I think the Lakers should not only think about who to keep, but also what position to have those players play.
The way the League is trending, teams that can come up with at least two formulas (small-ball, 1-in / 4-out, traditional etc.), usually have a lot of success.
1. Current roster evaluation:
- B. Ingram : to me, he is a play-maker, not yet a PG, but I would start him there, have him defend that position as well, because he could have the same type of advantage Magic Johnson had, and now Giannis has.
- D. Russell : a decent player, still a lot of potential despite areas of need (call them weaknesses, if you want); to me, he'd be great off the bench, without worrying about play-making.
- J. Clarkson : still needs to find an identity, and to become at least decent on D
- N. Young : he would be great coming off the bench, maybe he can develop a Tony Allen mentality to go with his shot-making and shot-taking (which has greatly improved)
- D. Nwaba : great surprise, coming out of nowhere; if he keeps developing, I see him starting alongside Ingram, handling the stronger guards
- L. Deng : needs to be traded by January next year; why not right away? Because he's a true professional, and his presence in the locker room, if given a proper role when on the court (play less
), can be golden. He should be traded for spare parts to a team looking to contend
- C. Brewer : will stay on the roster, also a positive influence and decent if plays only 10 mpg
- J. Randle : needs to come off the bench, because he's not long enough on D, sometimes loses focus, and has such a peculiar skill-set that if you play him against average or bad players, he will eat them alive. I envision him in a L. Odom role, playing 25 - 30 minutes, getting 14, 10 and 5 easily
- L. Nance : can really develop into starting PF, because of agility and ability on Defense, and also being able to finish lobs; needs to focus on 2 things this summer : getting in better shape, because he can be quicker to the ball than everyone else, like Rodman used to, and get 12 rebounds per game. If he gets to that level and becomes less hesitant when shooting, he'd be great
- T. Robinson : keep him because he will play hard for 12-15 mpg and really make a difference
- I. Zubac : he's the starting C in my opinion, although he has a long way to go, but he does have good footwork for someone picked 31 and that big. A similar player in size, build and skill is M. Gasol; nobody envisioned him to lose that weight and become such a refined player, but he's top notch to me. In Year 2, Zubac should be good for 20-26 minutes, starting games and making sure nobody gets too comfortable getting to the rim
- T. Mozgov : needs to be traded to a team where the skills he DOES have are put to better use. At least, he can be traded for smaller contracts (like an injured player + an expiring contract that doesn't want to stick to the current team).
- T. Black : keep him; you need a MAN in the locker room
That being said, Deng and Mozgov need to be traded, and I'd keep everyone else.
Draft a Small Forward, if possible, but also find a decent one with potential on the FA market. Maybe J. Simmons (Otto Porter will get a lot more money than he should).
A more athletic Center, that compliments Zubac's skill-set, but one that doesn't have to play a lot (10-15 minutes ?)
