The Lakers have remade their roster this offseason, adding players they see as better fits around Luka Doncic’s style. Los Angeles overpaid but got its center in Walker Kessler (now he just has to stay healthy), re-signed Austin Reaves to be the secondary shot creator next to Doncic, and added a good two-way wing in Quentin Grimes.
Los Ángeles has one open roster spot and are considering filling it with wing Jonathan Kuminga, reports Broderick Turner at The Los Angeles Times.
Jonathan Kuminga is a player the Lakers are after, according to people with knowledge of the situation who said L.A. is looking at a two-year, $20-million deal for Kuminga, the sort of athletic wing player the Lakers need to start at small forward.
The Cavaliers also have expressed interest in Kuminga, but they need the LeBron James situation to play out — Cleveland may be the frontrunner — before moving on to Kuminga.
Kuminga checks a lot of boxes for the Lakers: Good size at 6’7″, a plus defender on the perimeter, and he averaged 12.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game last season, shooting 33.3% from 3-point range. However, he has been better with the ball in his hands as a shot creator than he has been working off the ball, and he struggled to fit into Steve Kerr’s ball-and-player movement system with the Warriors, which led to clashes with the coach.
How well would Kuminga adapt to being the No. 3 option and having to work primarily off the ball and knocking down 3s for the Lakers?
It’s currently envisioned that the veteran, more steady Grimes will start at the three, but the Lakers have a lot of decisions to make at training camp.
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