Lakers News: South Bay Lakers Trade For Rights To L.J. Figueroa
The South Bay Lakers are sending out a 2023 G League first-round draft pick and the returning player rights for former LSU point guard Tremont Waters to the Santa Cruz Warriors in a deal for the returning player rights to small forward L.J. Figueroa, the Lakers' NBAGL club has announced in a press release.
So who is the newest arrival to El Segundo?
After the 6'6" Figueroa went undrafted out of Oregon in 2021, he played with Dominican pro club Leones de Santo Domingo during the summer of 2021. In October of that year, he latched on with the Golden State Warriors' NBAGL club the Santa Cruz Warriors as an affiliate player.
Figueroa suited up for Odessa College as a college freshman during the 2017-18 season. He transferred to St. John's, where he played for two seasons before declaring for the 2020 NBA draft. After gauging lackluster interest, he transferred to the University of Oregon to conclude his NCAA tenure.
Across 32 games with Santa Cruz, including 23 starts, the 24-year-old averaged 16.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, one steal, and 0.6 blocks a night. He connected on 49.4% of his field goals (including a somewhat sub-par 32.3% of his 5.2 three-point attempts) and 78.1% of his free throws.
He will probably not play at the NBA level this season. But his G League numbers sure are tantalizing.
