The Los Angeles Lakers had a solid start to the NBA’s free agency period on Friday. They signed guard Gabe Vincent and forward Taurean Prince, both of whom should be at least minor upgrades over the outgoing Dennis Schroder and Troy Brown Jr., and they also took a flyer on former lottery pick Cam Reddish.
The team also came to terms with forward Rui Hachimura on a new contract, which allowed it to achieve the first part of its main objective — keeping its current core as intact as possible.
D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves, the Lakers’ two other major free agents, remain unsigned, and although keeping them is a big priority, they still have another hole to fill: the center position.
Anthony Davis is the only player on the roster fully capable of playing the position. Even if he will continue to exclusively play at the five, the Lakers need a capable backup at that spot (or possibly two of them).
According to Jovan Buha, center Mo Bamba, whom they recently waived, is interested in staying with the team.
Via The Athletic:
“At this point, they only have one center (Davis) on the roster. Hachimura and (LeBron) James are capable of sliding up to center, but that’s only in certain situations. As the Lakers look to fill their final two roster spots beyond Reaves and (possibly) Russell, the best approach would be inking two veteran’s minimum bigs as necessary depth and injury insurance. Bamba has interest in staying with the Lakers and could be an option, according to a league source.”
Bamba barely played for L.A. after it acquired him in a February trade, but he is a capable shot-blocker and 3-point shooter who also possesses decent athleticism and a beastly 7-foot-10 wingspan.
