Last season, the Los Angeles Lakers had a very weak center rotation. They depended on the washed-up DeAndre Jordan and a declining Dwight Howard.
Jordan fell out of the rotation before long, while Howard was played inconsistently and clearly wasn’t the same vital role player he had been during their championship season two years prior.
But this season, Los Angeles has what looks like two true centers, Damian Jones and Thomas Bryant.
So far in training camp, it appears head coach Darvin Ham has preferred starting Jones over Bryant, even though many thought Bryant might have had the inside track for that spot.
But Bryant has no hard feelings.
Via Lakers Nation:
“‘He’s a very athletic, big man who can really attack the rim, protect the rim as well,’ the 25-year-old Bryant said of Jones at Lakers media day. ‘And, and I feel like myself is a great inside score but also the 3-point shooting that I can bring to the table as well really helps.’
“Bryant added his goal isn’t to start games — but rather, to help the Lakers win.
“‘Whatever you play in this game of basketball, you always want to play with the best of the best all the time and everything. But for me, throughout this team, it’s not about starting,’ he said.
“‘It’s about what does this team need me to do? What can I bring to the table? How can I help myself and this team to perform the best way possible — and that’s winning. That’s all we care about, it’s winning. So it doesn’t matter if I’m starting, coming off the bench, we want to win.'”
Thomas is a more proven 3-point shooter and a more energetic and visceral player, but Jones may have a little more bounce in terms of his athleticism and being a lob threat.
During the 2019-20 season, one of the things that made the Lakers tough to handle was the “vertical spacing” that Howard and JaVale McGee provided, as well as their ability to block shots and run the floor in transition.
Those are all qualities Jones and Bryant also possess.
Ham trusts Jones to fire from downtown
An added quality the Lakers could really benefit from at the 5 is the ability to space the floor for LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook by hitting 3-pointers.
Although Jones showed some growth in that area last season, no one can call him a legitimate outside threat right now.
But Ham has made it clear he trusts his outside shot and wants him putting it up from that distance.
Via The Athletic:
“There’s some underneath out-of-bounds (sets) and some sets and some running habits that’s going to allow him to be able to take that shot,” Ham said. “And I have all the trust in the world in it. The way he’s shot the ball since we’ve been working out and different shooting drills, he’s capable of making that shot — more than capable. I know, no disrespect (to) Robin, but if I have Robin Lopez making 3s, I’m sure I can get Damian Jones to make 3s.”
Last year, Jones shot 34.5% from downtown on 0.5 attempts per game. But the previous season he went just 1-of-4 in total from beyond the arc.
