Malik Beasley & Mo Bamba are now Free Agents 👀
The Lakers will waive Mo Bamba and not pick up the team option on Malik Beasley today, sources told ESPN. LAL plans to stay in contact with both players’ representatives throughout free agency and could find different deal structures for Bamba and/or Beasley’s return to LA
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) June 29, 2023
by 901KEY
3 Comments
Two players from the team that beat us in the playoffs but didn’t even get minutes?
Yeah I’ll pass.
Mo Bamba wouldn’t be a bad pick-up to be a clear back-up 5. When he started for Orlando, his numbers were solid in all the areas one would need. Clarke won’t be back this year and he probably won’t be the same when he returns. X, for all his pluses, is undersized. Steve-O might continue to have knee problems for the rest of his career. Mo Bamba would provide what we need in a 5 (*plus a little more, even; he’s not bad from the outside*) and address the “*It sure is too bad we didn’t have Walker Kessler…*” feelings we had last post season.
There’s constant chatter on this sub about the need for a wing but between the 3 people we currently have (*four really if you count GG which there’s an argument to be made that his potential merits him getting minutes*) we can do *wing-by-committee*.
Like there no getting around that we actually have guys who should get minutes there. If we picked up some other wing who is supposed to get significant time on the floor then where are the minutes to give to LaRavia so he can develop? Where are the minutes that Roddy clearly earned after having a better-than-expected rookie season? Where are the minutes to give to Z so he can prove that he’s not a draft bust (*because we’re rapidly approaching the point where even if he isn’t, other teams will see him as such and at that point, if he’s anything other than mind-blowing then his trade value takes a nose dive*)? Where would we find minutes for GG to prove that he’s actually the player that people want Z to be?
There’s only 48 minutes available per position. We have enough bodies to fill the wing. We need a full-sized backup 5 so that Trip —*who does not rebound*— and Santi —*who would hurt us less at the wing than he would in the middle*— don’t have to play out of position.
Beasley- ehhh maybe. Bamba- nope.