When the Los Angeles Lakers signed free agent big man Christian Wood this past summer, many fans were hopeful he would help the team. In fact, some fans were downright excited.
It made sense, at least on some level. Wood is a proven scorer who averaged 18.1 points in 29.3 minutes a game while shooting 50.9% from the field the previous three seasons. He is also a reliable 3-point shooter who had a lifetime mark of 37.9% from downtown coming into this season.
But this season, Wood has failed to contribute much to the Lakers. This isn’t the case of a good player’s numbers being somewhat depressed — he has been a downright flop, at least so far.
Wood has gone from a key piece to a ghost
In October and November, the big man averaged 7.3 points on 44.7% overall shooting and 26.9% 3-point shooting in 20.7 minutes per game. While he was helping the team on the boards by averaging 6.1 rebounds per contest during that span, his offensive production was fitful.
In 20 games during that span, he hit double figures in scoring just seven times. Compare that to last season when, as a member of the Dallas Mavericks, he was in double figures in scoring 54 times in 67 games played.
In December, things have gone from bad to worse for Wood.
He has averaged just 12.7 minutes a game of playing time, and he has even posted five DNP-CDs (did not play — coach’s decision) in 11 games. That doesn’t even include the in-season tournament final game, in which he also didn’t play despite being available.
Wood has had a reputation for being an offense-only player who is a terrible defender and self-entitled. It is hard to tell exactly why he has practically fallen out of head coach Darvin Ham’s rotation, but the bottom line is that even when he has played significant minutes, he has failed to play at anything close to the level he was at the past three seasons.
The 28-year-old was expected to play a key role off the bench as L.A.’s main backup big man behind Anthony Davis. But his lack of production has created a big hole there, especially since Jaxson Hayes, the team’s only other backup center, has made only a minimal impact.
If there is a time for Wood to start showing up and stepping up, it is now. The Lakers, after their loss to the Celtics on Christmas Day, are 16-15, and time is running out for them to make a legitimate run to turn themselves into legitimate contenders.
