After an extremely bad season, the Los Angeles Lakers generals and management all hope to bottom out in the new season and prove themselves again. Then every offseason is the best opportunity for each team to adjust and upgrade their lineup. Lakers naturally cannot miss it easily. The management is well aware of this, so the Lakers have taken active actions and become one of the most active teams in the market.
According to relevant reports from famous reporter Tim McMahon, the Houston Rockets have decided to deal with John Wall. The only suspense is whether to directly send him to other teams or whether the Rockets reach a buyout agreement with John Wall. , let him become a free agent and choose his next home. And if the Rockets choose to buy out John Wall, the latter is likely to come to big cities like Los Angeles or New York. The Lakers, Clippers and Knicks will all offer John Wall an olive branch.
You must know that at his peak, John Wall was not only an All-Star, but he also beat Kelly Irving and Thomas Jr. and was known as the first point guard in the Eastern Conference. It's a pity that a serious Achilles tendon injury destroyed John Wall. His long-term absence and recovery period made him withdraw from the ranks of first-line stars. However, John Wall still showed good competitive form after his comeback. Last season, John Wall switched to the Houston Rockets and averaged 20.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, 6.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He also made many key hits in the closing stages. The ball helped the Rockets defeat powerful enemies, and John Wall not only led the team in assists, but also ranked second on the team in points per game after Christian Wood.
This season, John Wall has huge differences with the Rockets in terms of role positioning. The team hopes that he will reduce his playing time and serve as a substitute. For John Wall, the reduction in playing time is okay, but being a substitute is unacceptable, so the two sides have always been in a stalemate and simply reached a private agreement that John Wall will no longer play on behalf of the Rockets. The gratifying thing is that even if John Wall does not play on the court, it does not affect the atmosphere of the Rockets' locker room and even often mentors the young players in the team. This allows John Wall to still maintain a good market. The Lakers have very little salary space left. The 40 million John Wall will obviously prohibit many teams. However, if they sign a minimum salary or a mid-level contract after the buyout, many teams will be willing to take a gamble on John Wall. Which naturally includes the Los Angeles Lakers.
In addition, the team's two major substitutes Stanley Johnson and Kendrick Nunn are basically confirmed to stay on the team. This will put the pressure on general manager Robert Pelinka slightly less, and the lineup will have two more players. People, of course their situations are very different. Stanley Johnson originally had a team option. He performed well after joining the Lakers, and the management chose to execute it without any suspense. As the No. 8 pick in the first round in 2015, Stanley Johnson was not very lucky. When he entered the league, he happened to catch up with the era of small ball and three-pointers, so he played for the Pistons , Pelicans and Raptors . , but none of them were typed.
Stanley Johnson only joined the Lakers in the middle of this season. Judging from basic statistics alone, Stanley Johnson seems mediocre, averaging only 6.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. But friends who have watched the game know how important Stanley Johnson is. The Lakers often arrange for him to consume the opponent's main scorer. Stanley Johnson also fulfills his duties conscientiously. I believe he will still become the main rotation lineup in the new season. a member of the Lakers and contribute their own strength to the Lakers.
Kendrick Nunn is completely different. As an undrafted player, Kendrick Nunn performed very well in the first two years of his career, averaging about 15 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists per game. Among them, Kendrick Nunn's field goal percentage reached nearly 50% last season and his three-point shooting percentage was also 38%.Judging from the characteristics of his playing style, Kendrick Nunn is a bit like an enhanced version of Patrick Beverley . The defense is extremely strong and fierce. He does not occupy the ball on the offensive end, but he has a certain shooting threat. Of course, Kendrick Nunn En's impact is stronger, so when the Lakers signed a two-year, $10 million contract with him last summer, the outside world felt that the Purple and Gold Army had taken a big advantage.
However, God is not as good as God. This season, Kendrick Nunn was reimbursed for the entire season due to a knee injury. He did not even play a game on behalf of the Lakers. The reputation of this signing also plummeted. No one knows how Kendrick Nunn will be in shape after his return, not even himself, so Kendrick Nunn decisively executes the player option and gets his $5 million salary first. Of course, this is not everything for Kendrick Nunn. If he cannot find his form in the new season, whether he can gain a foothold in the league in the future will be a question mark. The same is true for the Lakers. After all, Kendrick Nunn already occupies a player quota and part of the salary space. If he can't count on it at all, it will have a certain impact on the team.
