In an effort to get to know his players better, Daniels would often pick their brains on random topics. The answer still amazes Daniels, given all the flashy high-flyers he could have chosen; but he gets it.
During a defensive drill, Westbrook was supposed to get back after a shot and be the safety valve. Instead, he crashed the offensive boards each time. Howland grew increasingly frustrated and kicked him off the floor. Westbrook mumbled under his breath and flashed that trademark scowl. Over the days, Keating began to watch Westbrook, closely paying attention to body language, tone of voice and how he reacted to any and everything.
It was like unlocking the first key to a complicated puzzle. Westbrook became easier to teach and started to pick up the college game. But Howland trusted the steady duo of Arron Afflalo and Collison, who thrived in his team-oriented system and could execute down the stretch.
Westbrook wound up playing just nine minutes per game, with paltry averages of 3. But the summer between his freshman and sophomore years would prove to be one of the most significant periods of his basketball development.
Few, if any, of the pros taking the floor with him could match his speed or athleticism. As a full-time sophomore starter, he played with more control. Against Michigan State, he played 40 minutes with just one turnover. He could get his shot at any time. He learned to play with Darren Collison. He could aggressively defend without fouling and was named Pac Defensive Player of the Year. After the season, Westbrook visited Howland in his office.
He wanted to put his name in the draft. Howland was reluctant. He thought Collison was leaving and hoped Westbrook would blossom into a well-rounded starting point guard as a junior.
He had been in the mids on most draft boards, and Howland thought that, with more skill development, he could be a top-three pick. He was so positive. He embraced everyone. His personality was so positive that everyone was taken aback. He was always so upbeat. He tested off the charts in all the personality tests. I really miss him. The Seattle SuperSonics' practice had been over for about 20 minutes.
Westbrook was on their radar, but the team was in the market for a big man. He made it his mission to convince us, so we started to take a serious look at him because he was so passionate. After Westbrook declared for the draft, he began working out full-time with trainer Rob McClanaghan. Westbrook would arrive daily at Santa Monica High School for high-intensity, minute training sessions in the sweltering gym three blocks from the ocean.
He loved raggedy gyms. Squeaky floors, crooked rims and fingerprinted backboards gave his workouts a gritty charm. In other words, they controlled tempo to set up their defender, then used their skills to get their desired shots. Early on, Westbrook urged McClanaghan to come to the gym everyday—the same way his year-old self would insist to his father that they work out on Thanksgiving. To perfect his clanky pull-up, McClanaghan would have Westbrook start at one hash mark and dribble full speed to the opposite elbow, stop on a dime and pull straight up.
The Sonics landed the fourth pick and planned to bring in about 20 players for workouts. They had Stanford center Brook Lopez at No. Plus, the team desperately needed a big to anchor its defense. After watching an early-morning workout in Santa Monica in which Russell arrived 45 minutes before the GM, Presti knew he had his man.
Howland was there the night Westbrook was taken with the fourth overall pick. He still has the SuperSonics cap the plucky guard from Leuzinger gave him that night. On July 2, Carlesimo took his wife to dinner to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary when the phone rang just as the entrees arrived. It was Presti telling the coach the deal had gone through, clearing the way for the team to relocate to Oklahoma City. They had to be in OKC the next day to look for a new practice facility and begin preparing its renovation.
The pandemic lowered cap projections enough to make it virtually impossible for them to create the space for Giannis Antetokounmpo , so in all likelihood, the Lakers will spend this offseason building for the James-Davis window. Their conservative offseason will still work to their advantage, though. The Lakers will enter the offseason below the cap.
A new deal for Davis quickly wipes away any practical space, but they still have so little committed that they'll be able to operate relatively freely from a financial perspective. Talen Horton-Tucker. Luol Deng dead salary. First thing's first: Davis will reportedly re-sign with the Lakers after opting-out, but the uncertain cap gives him an uncertain cap number. He is getting the max, but as the max is based on a percentage of the salary cap, we can't set an exact dollar figure.
Davis has eight years of NBA experience, meaning he is eligible for up to 30 percent of the cap in the first season of a new deal. That gives the Lakers two possible financial pathways this offseason. If they choose to use only the smaller taxpayer mid-level exception, they are free to spend as much cash as they'd like within the confines of the cap. This is the path of least resistance, the road that they take if the plan is simply to bring everybody back, add one meaningful free agent and then focus on the trade market.
But the other, possibly more tempting, option would be to use both the non-taxpayer mid-level exception and the bi-annual exception. Most of those players are likely incumbents, as they still have several options of their own to sort through. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Avery Bradley. Bradley and McGee are probably opting-in, whether the Lakers want them to or not.
Bradley's bubble absence and McGee's bubble irrelevance makes it highly unlikely that either would get a raise on the market. Caldwell-Pope and Rondo are reportedly opting out, and both have earned raises. This is where things get tricky. Caldwell-Pope might be the best 3-and-D player on the market.
That does not account for Rondo, and it leaves the Lakers with just 13 players. There are further workarounds here. Having the full mid-level exception doesn't necessarily mean using all of it. The Lakers could stash their first-round pick in Europe. McGee and Cook are easy enough to dump in trades. There are solutions here, and they are worth exploring considering just how much optionality the Lakers could have with these exceptions.
Only three unrestricted free agents can be characterized as absolute locks to get above the mid-level exception: Davis, who already plays for the Lakers, Fred VanVleet and Jerami Grant. There is another tier of players who likely will, but only through Bird Rights with their original teams. Otherwise, the Lakers could potentially pursue almost anybody on the market. Insomuch as the Lakers actually have needs, four stand out as archetypes to pursue.
The Lakers sorely lacked ballhandling aside from James during the regular season, and while Rondo filled that void in the playoffs, he is a year-old free agent and probably shouldn't be relied upon. They could use another small forward-sized defender as well, especially for a possible Clippers matchup, to make sure that LeBron can save some energy for offense.
And then there's shooting. The Lakers ranked 23rd in 3-point attempts and 21st in 3-point percentage. They worked around this defect in the playoffs, but better spacing would undeniably make life easier for James and Davis. That would especially be true if they could find a shooting center that wouldn't hurt them defensively, as it would essentially allow the Lakers to play entire playoff games without a true center cramping the floor if they so chose. The bi-annual exception is much simpler to calculate.
Any of the players listed here would be worthwhile targets, but its best and most obvious use would be in the retention of Dwight Howard.
The Lakers only have non-Bird Rights on him, allowing them to offer percent of his minimum salary without using an exception. Howard is going to get far bigger offers.
The Lakers won't necessarily need to make the highest bid here. But he's earned more than the minimum, and the Lakers shouldn't risk asking him to take so little. The last player that needs to be covered here in-depth is Rondo. Fortunately, the Lakers have the freedom to pay him.
He's spent two years in Los Angeles, giving the Lakers Early Bird Rights and the ability to pay him up to the league's average salary same as the full mid-level exception. He could get more than the Lakers are willing to give from another contender, but the list of suitors will be short. Most teams can't afford to pay a point guard who hibernates through the regular season.
The Lakers would like Rondo back. They wouldn't be champions right now without him. But the business of basketball is brutal, and if they have to start making difficult hard-cap decisions, Rondo may be the odd man out.
That is especially true if the Lakers grab one of the many point guards in this year's draft class. Owed future first-round picks: to New Orleans protected , unprotected , to New Orleans unprotected, but Pelicans have the right to defer until This list of owed picks isn't nearly as daunting as, say, Houston's.
Owing an unprotected pick to the Pelicans means little with James and Davis likely in place and still contending by that point. I'm like, it could be a completely different series if we played him one more game earlier.
Like, I'm not tired now. Coming off the bench in lineups that are designed to prop him up, none of this is a bad thing so far. Last year 4. If this aggression keeps up with modest efficiency, the year-old will waltz into Sixth Man of the Year debates.
But so far the most intriguing contributions made by their new players especially Alex Caruso and Lonzo Ball have impacted the defense, which in turn is allowing Chicago to take shape as one of the most adrenalized open floor attacks in basketball.
Do not get sloppy against Chicago, or hesitate for a second racing back off a missed shot. The Bulls will ram the ball down your throat. Last year they ranked 26th in opposing turnover percentage. After Caruso made that reverse and-1 layup, the crowd serenaded him with an M-V-P chant, which feels appropriate. Chaos is their friend. Cleveland ranks 19th in defensive rating. For reference, the Lakers led the NBA in defensive rating a year ago at But at the same time, assuming Collin Sexton and Darius Garland remain the starting backcourt, Markkanen is a key spacer on offense.
And Allen and Mobley may have what it takes to keep everything intact. These two make a ton of sense together, holding up on switches, dropping, showing in the pick-and-roll. They contest jumpers and protect the rim, rebound, delete passing lanes and take potential cutters away with their length and activity. Watching them interact is an early season League Pass delight.
Amidst all the uncertainty, the Raiders finished at No. Also, How many fantasy points did By The Numbers: Facebook Twitter Reddit. Table of Contents. Also read What is Ondreaz Lopez full name?
Also read Who is the best backup goalie in the NHL? Read more. Read on Read later. Answred by. Grady Goodspeed September 6,
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