Pacific Notes: Jones, Kings, Suns, Clippers

New Lakers reserve center Damian Jones, currently on a 10-day contract with Los Angeles, could have another 10-day deal waiting for him. Head coach Frank Vogel suggested Jones deserved to be “optimistic about what’s ahead of him” after his current contract expires, Jovan Buha of The Athletic tweets.

In three games with the Lakers (including one start), the 6’11” Jones is averaging 4.0 PPG, 1.7 RPG and 1.3 BPG across just 10.3 MPG. The 25-year-old was drafted with the No. 30 pick out of Vanderbilt by the Warriors in 2016. After Golden State, Jones suited up for the Hawks and Suns before his current stop with the Lakers.

There’s more out of the Pacific Division:

  • When asked on Wednesday about his long-term fit alongside fellow exciting young Kings teammates De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton, former No. 2 draft pick Marvin Bagley III was noncommittal, according to Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee. “You don’t know what can happen in the future,” Bagley said. “When I step on the court with this group of guys that we have now, I try to do my best and just give it everything I have so we can try to win.”
  • Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer takes a deep dive on the rising Suns, currently owners of a sparkling 23-11 record, good for the No. 2 seed in the West. “There’s no secret sauce,” Suns GM James Jones said of his team’s construction. “It’s not like good organizations take clay and immediately mold it into something spectacular. They build a good foundation, and then grow it from there.” O’Connor assesses how the arrival of savvy veterans like Chris Paul and Jae Crowder this offseason has greatly aided the development and output of intriguing recent lottery selections Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson.
  • Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue met with All-Stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George ahead of their last game before the All-Star break tonight, hoping to address the team’s recent late-game woes, according to Mirjam Swanson of the Orange County Register. Before tonight, Los Angeles had a league-worst “clutch minutes” rating of -24.3. Whatever they were working on did not quite click this evening, as the Clippers (without George) lost a close contest to the Wizards, 119-117.
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