The Lakers have their squad ready for tip-off, as the team has cemented its 15-man roster just in time for Wednesday’s season opener against Houston.
This year’s outfit features a nearly even mix of youngsters and veterans, as the Lakers prepare for the first chapter of the Luke Walton era.
Point Guards
It all begins with D’Angelo Russell, who will pilot Los Angeles’ offense after a rocky campaign that ended with Second Team All-Rookie honors last year. The 20-year-old flashed his potential during preseason, finishing as the league’s 10th-leading scorer with 17.8 points per game, having dropped 30-plus in two of the eight contests.
Russell will be backed by a pair of foreign products, including a familiar face in Marcelo Huertas. Fresh off of averaging the third-most assists at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics (6.6), the Brazilian looks to bring his flare for highlight playmaking back to the Lakers.
The team also brought in another Olympian in Jose Calderon, who was acquired from Chicago along with a pair of future second-round picks. The Spaniard ranked 10th in the NBA in 3-point percentage last year (41.4), but has a lot of miles on him at 35 years old.
Shooting Guards
It’s uncertain whether Jordan Clarkson or Lou Williams will start at the two, but both have their merits.
Clarkson was the second-highest scoring sophomore last season, pitching in 15.5 points per game. In a surprising move, Walton had him come off the bench for the majority of preseason, which saw him scored double figures in the first seven games, helping to galvanize the team’s successful second unit.
Williams, meanwhile, started most of the exhibitions after making 35 appearances in L.A.’s opening lineup last year. The 11-year veteran has earned a reputation as a reliable scorer, having averaged 15.3 points last year, including 5.3 at the foul line.
Small Forwards
New addition Luol Deng will begin the season as the starting three after contributing 12.3 points and 6.0 rebounds for Miami last year. Walton plans to get creative with moving his players to different positions and Deng is a perfect example, having thrived while playing power forward last year by taking advantage of bigger and slower competition.
Of course, most Lakers fans are waiting to see the development of Brandon Ingram, who will begin his career by coming off the bench. Like Deng, the second-overall pick is versatile and even played some point forward in the preseason, which helped him drop 21 points against Golden State. However, the 19-year-old is still raw and averaged 7.4 points during the exhibition slate.
Surprisingly one of the Lakers’ best players in preseason, Nick Young will return for his fourth year with the purple and gold. After averaging 7.3 points on 33.9 percent shooting in the worst season of his career, Young consistently competed on both ends in October, contributing 12.4 points on 48.4 percent.
Speaking of surprises, 36-year-old Metta World Peace is coming back for a 17th season in the NBA. Like Young, he struggled to perform last year, shooting 31.1 percent toward 5.0 points, but the Lakers’ brass was impressed by his physical condition and ability to mentor the younger players.
Power Forwards
A top-10 rebounder in his first full NBA season, Julius Randle will be looked toward for leading the Lakers’ charge on the glass, which was a notable weakness in preseason. Randle averaged a double-double last year (11.3 ppg, 10.2 rpg) but is still working on his outside shot, having gone just 4-of-17 from the perimeter in preseason.
Sophomore Larry Nance Jr. will seek to continue providing consistent energy and the occasional Twitter-igniting highlight that was prevalent during his rookie year. Considered a steal as last year’s 27th-overall pick, Nance has been solid on both sides of the ball and will look to grow into an expanded role.
Tarik Black didn’t play much last year, averaging the fewest minutes of any player on L.A.’s roster, but he is looking to log some time at power forward and center this season. Like Nance, he is the type of player to make his mark by constantly playing full speed, while also adding an impressive amount of strength.
With Yi Jianlian requesting to be waived and the Lakers deciding to part ways with Anthony Brown, journeyman Thomas Robinson was the unexpected addition to the opening-night roster. This will be the former fifth-overall pick’s seventh team in six years, but he shined in limited preseason playing time, averaging 3.7 points and 3.7 assists in 7.6 minutes.
Centers
The big man of the starting lineup will be newcomer Timofey Mozgov, who brings a 7-foot-1 defensive presence to the paint, as well as six years of NBA experience.
Behind him will be 19-year-old Ivica Zubac, who also expects to spend some time getting reps in the D-League with the Los Angeles D-Fenders. Selected 32nd overall in the draft, Zubac has spent the past three years playing in Europe and made brief appearances for the Lakers in preseason.