The NBA is in the quiet part of its offseason, but the Los Angeles Lakers made two roster moves on Wednesday.
First, they waived undrafted forward Cole Swider, who had been on a two-way contract. He has shown considerable potential as a 3-point shooter, but the team is presumably disappointed in the other facets of his game, particularly his defense.
Waiving Swider opened a two-way roster spot for the Lakers, and they signed Alex Fudge, another undrafted forward, to a two-way deal.
Fudge played two seasons of college basketball, one with Louisiana State University and another at the University of Florida.
The Los Angeles Lakers are waiving Cole Swider, league sources told @hoopshype.
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) July 26, 2023
Florida F Alex Fudge has agreed on a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Lakers, his agent Shayaun Saee of @OneLegacysports tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 26, 2023
Los Angeles originally signed Fudge to an Exhibit 10 deal. Other than some occasional shot-blocking, he didn’t produce much during NBA Summer League play earlier this month.
But the moves could be another sign executive Rob Pelinka values players that contribute on both ends of the floor, particularly the defensive end.