Lakers Rumors: LA To Sign Versatile Wing To 10-Day Contract
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A day after teams league-wide were first permitted to add players via 10-day contracts, your Los Angeles Lakers appear poised to make their first move.
Shams Charania and Jovan Buha of The Athletic report that LA is working towards signing veteran shooting guard/small forward Sterling Brown to a 10-day deal. Brown has been playing for the NBAGL's Raptors 905 this year.
Brown, 27, most recently suited up in the NBA on a minimum deal with the Dallas Mavericks during the 2021-22 season. The 6'5" swingman boasts five years of NBA experience, and through his 264 regular season games is averaging 5.4 points on .420/.364/.796 shooting splits, 3.3 rebounds, and one assist. Brown could offer up some help on both sides of the both, as a dynamic wing who can stretch the floor and defend a bit, and one who stands taller than 6'4". Head coach Darvin Ham has prioritized playing smaller players up a position or two (6'1" Patrick Beverley is the team's starting shooting guard, while 6'4" Lonnie Walker IV is the club's starting small forward) no doubt in part because he has been hamstrung by a roster thin on perimeter players with size.
Like many Lakers signings these days, Sterling Brown does also boast a unique prior connection to the Purple and Gold: he is the younger brother of ex-Lakers reserve shooting guard Shannon Brown, who played with the Lakers from 2009-11, winning two titles for his trouble. Shannon also has a connection to current Lakers superstar forward LeBron James, having been selected with the 25th pick in the 2006 draft out of Michigan State by LBJ's Cleveland Cavaliers, for whom he played for a year and a half.
That's not to say that team vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka isn't doing his due diligence with building out the fringes of the Lakers roster. The club also auditioned at least one other candidate, another wing, yesterday: former Dallas Mavericks two-way shooting guard Tyler Dorsey.
A report earlier today that Los Angeles was looking to work out former four-time All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins next week suggests the team may not be finished shoring up its roster depth. Should Los Angeles complete its deal to add Brown, the club will have all 15 of its available standard roster spots filled. For any additional pieces the Lakers want to add, the team will have to cut a guaranteed deal or two. Damian Jones, whom Cousins would ostensibly be replacing on the depth chart, seems to be the most expendable among these players.
Pelinka has done a fairly solid job of finding talent around the periphery of the Lakers' personnel additions over the years. But that's not really the problem for the 17-21 club this season: the issue is the three past-their-prime point guards on which LA is lavishing $65.4 million this year (Russell Westbrook, Patrick Beverley and Kendrick Nunn). One wonders exactly who is preventing LA from potentially dealing future draft picks in a bigger trade that could help improve the top of the roster right now, which feels shortsighted given how well James continues to perform, even at age 38.
