Los Angeles Lakers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers Waive Blue, Wear, Weber

October 14th, 2017 at 1:37pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers have reached the roster limit by waiving Vander Blue, Travis Wear and Briante Weber, the team announced on its website.

Blue has played just five NBA games — three with the Celtics and two with the Lakers — since going undrafted out of Marquette in 2013. The 25-year-old was MVP of the G League last season with L.A.’s affiliate and had a strong showing in the Las Vegas Summer League. His camp contract contains a $50K guarantee.

Wear has an Exhibit 10 deal, which could still be converted to a two-way contract as the Lakers have an opening. The 27-year-old forward will receive a bonus if he winds up in the G League.

Weber, a 24-year-old point guard, played 13 games with the Hornets at the end of last season.

The moves bring the Lakers’ roster down to 16 players, including a two-way contract for Alex Caruso.

Lakers' Starting Power Forward Still Undetermined

October 14th, 2017 at 10:26am CST by marksuleymanov

Larry Nance Jr. has been the favorite to win the Lakers‘ starting power forward position but the play of Kyle Kuzma — who led the NBA with 104 preseason points — has made it a tougher decision, Bill Oram of The Orange County Register writes.
The Lakers signed 19-year-old Can Pelister as the youngest international scout of all-time, according to basketball journalist David Pick (Twitter link).

Lakers Sign Travis Wear

October 12th, 2017 at 1:11pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have signed free agent forward Travis Wear, the club announced today in a press release. According to Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet (Twitter link), the contract is an Exhibit 10 deal, which will give Wear a bonus if he ends up playing in the G League.

That Exhibit 10 clause also allows Wear’s contract to be converted into a two-way contract, though it remains to be seen whether that will happen. The Lakers do have one open two-way slot, with Alex Caruso occupying the other one.

Wear, 27, is an UCLA alum who saw some NBA action for the Knicks in 2014/15. He hasn’t played in an NBA game since that season, but he played for the Lakers’ Summer League team this year and spent last season with the Los Angeles D-Fenders, averaging 12.7 PPG and 7.2 RPG in the G League. The Lakers’ affiliate, now known as the South Bay Lakers, still holds Wear’s G League rights.

The Lakers’ roster count is now at 19 players.

Julius Randle Knows Extension Is Unlikely

October 11th, 2017 at 5:03pm CST by Luke Adams

Julius Randle is extension-eligible, but his future with the Lakers is linked to the team’s pursuit of 2018 free agents, as Bill Oram of The Orange County Register details. Although Randle says his reps have been in touch with the Lakers, an extension this year is an extreme long shot.

Lonzo Ball May Miss Remainder Of Preseason

October 10th, 2017 at 9:39pm CST by marksuleymanov

Lonzo Ball sprained his left ankle last Monday during a preseason contest against the Nuggets and the Lakers think their first-rounder may sit out the remainder of the preseason, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN writes. Ball, 19, also sat out a portion of the Summer League a few months ago due to a calf strain.

Lakers head coach Luke Walton did not rule out Ball missing the season opener if his balky ankle does not improve. Walton said that Ball does not feel pain running straight but side-to-side movements are causing the UCLA product discomfort. Ball tried practicing on Sunday but he could not do it pain-free, Walton said.

Lakers Waive V.J. Beachem, Stephen Zimmerman

October 9th, 2017 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have begun to make cuts to their roster with the preseason nearing an end, announcing today in a press release that they’ve requested waivers on V.J. Beachem and Stephen Zimmerman. Beachem and Zimmerman will become unrestricted free agents on Wednesday, assuming they clear waivers.

Beachem and Zimmerman both signed contracts with the Lakers this summer, but saw very limited action during the preseason, and weren’t strong candidates to make the club’s 15-man roster.

Beachem, a 6’8″ forward who played his college ball at Notre Dame, averaged 14.5 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 2.4 3PG, and 1.1 BPG in his senior year last season. He received a $50K guarantee when he signed with the Lakers and looks like a candidate to join the club’s G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers.

Zimmerman, the 41st overall pick in the 2016 draft, was waived by the Magic after just one year with the franchise, but had some success in the G League last season. In 21 games for the Erie BayHawks, the young center averaged 13.4 PPG and 8.9 RPG.

The Lakers’ roster is now down to 18 players, including one (Alex Caruso) on a two-way contract. The club will have to make at least two more roster moves before the regular season begins.

Lakers Hire Director Of Basketball Analytics

October 7th, 2017 at 11:56am CST by marksuleymanov

The Lakers have hired Jason Rosenfeld as Director of Basketball Analytics, according to the team. As ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link) noted, the Lakers’ signing of Rosenfeld is crucial as the team has been criticized for its lack of analytics use.

L.A. Notes: Griffin, Rivers, Bogut, Ball

October 4th, 2017 at 10:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers enjoyed their trip to Hawaii both on and off the court, writes Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times. L.A. split a pair of games with the Raptors, and the players believe the experience helped to unify a team that lost Chris Paul, J.J. Redick and Jamal Crawford over the summer.

There was good news regarding star forward Blake Griffin, who was able to play without any lingering effects from surgery on his right big toe in May. Milos Teodosic showed off the passing that made him highly sought after in Europe, Patrick Beverley brought the hard-nosed defense that was his calling card in Houston and Lou Williams showed he can replace Crawford’s scoring off the bench. Also, the Lob City swagger lives on without Paul. “I don’t think we ever lost that,” said DeAndre Jordan. “We’ve got guys who can make passes like that. We’ve got myself, Blake, Willie [Reed], Montrezl [Harrell], guys like that rolling and able to play above the rim.”

There’s more tonight from Los Angeles:

The only bad news for the Clippers is on the injury front, Turner adds. Austin Rivers “is going to be out for a while” after straining a right gluteal muscle in the first game, said coach Doc Rivers.
Veteran center Andrew Bogut believes his young Lakers teammates can benefit from his experience, relays Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Bogut signed a one-year, partially guaranteed deal with the Lakers last month as he tries to prove he can come back from a tibia fracture he suffered in March. He is projected as a backup to Brook Lopez, one of the few veterans on the squad. “I have been through pretty much everything in this league, especially injury-wise, and been on championship teams, winningest teams, crappiest teams, teams with a lot of turnovers,” Bogut said. “I have seen everything.”
Rookie point guard Lonzo Ball has already become the face of the Lakers, writes Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post. The team has a lot invested in the overall No. 2 pick, who impressed his older teammates with his performance in camp. L.A. has lost at least 55 games in each of the past four seasons and needs the 19-year-old to emerge as a leader. “The way he plays the game of basketball, everywhere he goes … if he went to a rec center, people would follow him because he makes people better,” said coach Luke Walton. “That’s what great leaders do.”

NBA GMs: Lonzo Ball Is Rookie Of The Year Favorite

October 4th, 2017 at 9:56am CST by Luke Adams

While Dennis Smith Jr. of the Mavericks (37%) was voted the biggest steal of the 2017 draft, most GMs expect Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball (62%) to win the Rookie of the Year award.

[SOURCE LINK]

Lakers To Add Antawn Jamison For Scouting Role

October 3rd, 2017 at 4:21pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Lakers will hire Antawn Jamison in a scouting role, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports. Charania adds that he will work under president of basketball operations Magic Johnson, GM Rob Pelinka, and assistant GM Jesse Buss.

Jamison played for the Lakers back in the 2012/13 season and he has worked for the organization as a TV analyst since retiring from the league in 2014.

The former no. 4 overall pick spent 16 seasons as a pro where he averaged 18.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per contest. In addition to playing for the Lakers, he also spent time with the Warriors, Mavericks, Wizards, Cavs, and Clippers.