Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said the team hopes to add another big man this summer, and sources tell Jovan Buha of The Athletic that Christian Wood and Bismack Biyombo are among the names under consideration.
L.A. also had interest in Dario Saric before he signed with the Warriors over the weekend, Buha adds.
The Lakers already picked up former Pelicans center Jaxson Hayes on a two-year deal. During a session with reporters on Sunday, Pelinka indicated that the team plans to use more two-big lineups, which were effective during its championship run in 2020.
“I think adding Jaxson Hayes was key to that,” Pelinka said. “I think Jaxson, much like maybe Dwight Howard in that stretch for us: big body, rim protector, active roller. … But we are looking to add an additional center as well.”
Hayes received a minimum-salary contract with a player option for the second season. Whoever else the Lakers add will probably get the same type of deal, although Buha notes that L.A. has some flexibility because it didn’t use its full non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Gabe Vincent.
Vincent’s salary for next season is projected at $10.5MM, about $1.9MM below the MLE, allowing the Lakers to use the remaining money for another roster addition, either during the summer or later on. At this point, $1.9MM is below the minimum salary for a veteran player, but that won’t be the case later in the season when minimum deals are prorated.
“With the new CBA, eventually, you’re able to use the mid-level tool even for trades,” Pelinka said. “Not quite yet. But we were intentional about keeping some space and using that. It could come in handy. For instance, in the buyout market.”
In addition to Hayes and Vincent, the Lakers signed Taurean Prince and Cam Reddish this offseason and drafted Jalen Hood-Schifino and Maxwell Lewis. That leaves the team with 13 players, and the plan is to carry 14 when the season begins.
Wood, an offensive-minded big man, averaged 16.6 points and 7.3 rebounds for the Mavericks last season. Biyombo, who spent the past two years as a backup with the Suns, is more of a rim protector and rebounder with a limited offensive game.
I would take Wood if they can get him. Not a good defender, but his offensive game is deep. And his defense isn’t like, world-ending terrible. He was about average last year with the Mavs, actually positive close to the rim which works fine with a defender like AD or Vando in drop coverage. Biyombo would just be a liability on too many possessions imo.
For sure, Wood way before Biyombo. Lakers FO finally doing moves that make sense.
Lakers don’t have enough space under the first apron to take wood. If they go over the apron they cannot use the non taxpayer MLE so would lose Vincent.
Wood isn’t signing for the minimum. He is hoping for a sign and trade above the MLE ($12.5M) from some team. If that doesn’t show up, some team will sign him up for 4 years for $53M
Where does it say that anywhere in rumors and news
No, his defense is like, world ending. A huge reason as to why he’s unsigned and only receiving vet minimum offers. His defense is atrocious and he makes low IQ decisions
Montrez Harrell like
Hard to believe Wood can’t get more than minimum.
I honestly thought he was going to get at least the mini middy. Is there something seriously wrong behind the scenes? Because he’s too good for a minimum deal or no deal at all. Big men who can shoot 37% from three with volume don’t grow on trees.
It’s not like he was lazy on defense last year either. His contests were higher than average compared to his minutes played, his results were fine, and he was a plus in most lineups with the Mavs. I don’t get it at all. His rep during the draft was awful, but that was years ago.
I don’t get it either…
A lot of teams could use his skill set…
I’m also here for the confusion
Bit surprising indeed but outta the top 50 free agents available 2 weeks ago I’m not surprised Oubre and Wood are the 2 that couldn’t find (good) chairs
If he’s saying “much like maybe Dwight Howard,” why not the man himself while he’s still looking to play? You’re not looking for him to be the star. For the 15th spot, he’d be worth it.
Laker fans desperately clinging to 2020 lmao. Howard is washed
Dwight is too old and washed. There are younger versions of Howard out there who can keep up in this faster league. I imagine the Lakers don’t really need a veteran mentor to sit on the bench and I doubt Howard is the type of veteran to keep LeBron and AD in check. In a worst case scenario, Lakers are better off signing Howard mid season to add some “fresh” legs but right now they’re better off chasing other bigs
With the other moves the Lakers have made this off season if they can land Wood they’ll have had one of their best off seasons in a long time…
Wood might not be a perfect fit but he does tick a lot of the needed boxes next to LeBron…
And it stops another team from picking him up…
If you are considering introducing the “Christian Wood element” to your locker room ….. You must not feel good at all about your rotation bigs.
I really don’t see any issue with Wood in the locker room. He willingly came off the bench for the Mavs, played with hustle on the court, and didn’t complain much.
The only recent thing was the whole bustup with KPJ when he was on the Rockets, and KPJ initiated that and made it worse by throwing crap at him. That whole locker room was a disaster anyway. I would have sat out the second half of a game too if the whole team sided with a guy who was throwing things at me instead of trying to talk things out. That’s not how you treat teammates.
There is clearly an issue when a 6’11 dude who avg 16pts & shot 38%(from 3). Can barely get a minimum deal.
Okay, yeah, obviously. But where? There’s nothing over the past season that would indicate this kind of slow market for him, and only 1 thing over the past several.
this guy asked where lol. Just because it isn’t public that doesn’t mean anything. He’s been on 8 teams in the past 8 years. That should tell you something.
So Ish Smith is a locker room cancer? He’s played for 13 teams in 13 seasons. Nerlens Noel has been on six teams in nine seasons. PJ Tucker has been on four teams in the last three seasons. Dumb take. Some skill sets see guys traded or let become free agents a lot, and a big man with mediocre defense is one of those.
And if he was a bad enough teammate to turn a guy of his talent into a cancer, there would be buzz about it. Big men who can shoot, rebound, and finish at the rim at a high efficiency and decent volume are rare. He hasn’t had any on-court BS and the last locker room thing that leaked was started by another player who already had a rep as a head case. It’s odd for reports to not leak because media, players, and team employees talk all the time. There would be *something* other than base speculation if that were the case.
Also half of the bouncing around has been him trying to find his place in the league, which can sometimes happen for undrafted guys. Since becoming a rotation piece, he’s been on three teams, and both Detroit and Houston let him go because they are tanking.
None of the guys you mentioned are 6’11 avg 16pts and shooting 38% from 3. Can you explain why a guy with those stats can barely get the minimum?
I did, you just didn’t read. Maybe try.
Ok Christian wood wtv makes you sleep at night lol
I mean their true center rotation is AD and Hayes so adding a third big for when AD gets hurt or Hayes is inconsistent makes sense. Vanderbilt and Hachimura can play the 5 but they’re not options you’d feel great about if you need to play them almost exclusively at center. Wood makes sense since, in theory, there shouldn’t be any on-court fit issues if he plays with LeBron and AD at the same time.
Biyombo is a better fit. Two big lineups are about interior defense and rebounding. The second big (to AD) needs to enhance AD’s defensive impact by alleviating his paint responsibilities. I think Hayes has upside with AD in that alignment, but he can be all over the place. A contingency would be nice, but there’s no immediate rotation spot for another big. Even if Wood were willing to sign for minimum, he’s not a guy I’d want for that role.
Lol. Jaxon Hayes isn’t Dwight Howard and neither of them can stop Jokic
I have good faith in Jaxon … Hopes Blazers gave him a chance but i think Lakers could be a good spot for him if AD gets LM a lot
Did you read the article. The Lakers signed Hayes to a 2 year deal. Kinda hard for the Blazers to go after him.
They can’t afford Wood. He thinks he’s a max player. Not taking the minimum …..
Looks like Biyombo
I’m gonna go against most people here. I agree that CW is more skilled offensively, but there’s plenty of that already. Ill put into consideration the assumption of a deep playoff run. This requirement is for a bruiser to deal with the Jokic’s and Embiids. CW will be useless for that purpose and his offensive value is already covered in a lot of ways. That said, Byombo is my choice.
The thing is can you afford to play Biyombo come playoff time when teams are hunting matchups? Realistically lets face it, Jokic is as close to unguardable as it gets so for the most part it won’t matter who guards him. There are maybe 5-10 players in the league who you would feel ok about having to guard Jokic for 48 minutes and dealing with his postup game, his ability to shoot from outside, and all the switching he’s going to force in two man actions with Murray, KCP, and MPJ. If Vanderbilt, who is regarded as a versatile big with some switchability, got phased out of the rotation then why would Biyombo not considering he’s a paint-bound big with no offensive game.
We can all agree that right now, there’s really nobody that can slow Jokic. That’s not what I meant with Byombo. He’s not there to stop them. He’s there to push, shove, box, and get rebounds. He’s there to instill fatigue on opposing bigs. Woods just gonna try to look pretty. That’s why he’s in search of his 8th team.
Put 12 lbs on Castleton he’d be the guy…really impressive summer league but he needs to add some weight for the next level. Christie put that weight on in a year so hopefully Collin follows suit
Called this about a week ago.
Wood would be a great addition for the lakers.
I could see them starting Hayes for the first 5 or so minutes and then using him sporadically through the game similar to what they done in the past with Dwight and McGee. However Wood would come off the bench and get 25 or so minutes a night.
Although not a good defender he’s good offensively and can space the floor as a big. That works well with AD and Bron. AD can cover for his lack of defence and Bron needs the spacing.
Vando is also a good defender that could work well with Wood as he lacks a lot of offence.
I think as much of a good depth signing this would be it also takes him away from another team potentially having him and being better than you. Like imagine if he went to GSW and they meet in the playoffs and you lost because you lacked a big, or another scorer or Wood had a big couple games. It would hurt knowing you could’ve had him and gotten past a certain team in the playoffs
Ultimately good business by the lakers
Derrick Favors?
I’d love it if this was too happen because he’s a good scorer but I don’t see him taking the minimum anywhere
Wood should’ve signed that two year deal Dallas offered him last season. But the best he can do right now is sign for the minimum with a good team and get his value up.