Getty Images Forward Sekou Doumbouya.
The Los Angeles Lakers have parted ways with Sekou Doumbouya, who was taking up one of the team’s two-way roster spots.
Doumbouya, 21, was an interesting young prospect for the Lakers but the team is instead opting to use the two-way spot on Wenyen Gabriel. Doumbouya averaged 7.0 points and 3.0 rebounds in just 8.0 minutes per contest.
The Lakers are waiving forward Sekou Doumbouya to make room to sign forward Wenyen Gabriel to a two-way contract, league sources tell @TheAthletic.
Gabriel carries a little more NBA experience and there’s a chance he could be a contributor sooner than later as a small-ball big.
Gabriel appeared in seven games for the Clippers and Nets this season, averaging 2.0 points and 2.1 rebounds in 6.7 minutes. He has appeared in 58 career NBA games for the Clippers, Nets, Pelicans, Trail Blazers and Kings.
Sixers Frontrunner to Land DeAndre Jordan After Release
The Sixers might again be in the market for a former Lakers big man, with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reporting that Philadephia is the frontrunner to land DeAndre Jordan following his release from the Lakers on Tuesday.
Jordan was released to make room for veteran guard D.J. Augustin on the Lakers roster. The Sixers are in the market for a backup big man to sit behind Joel Embiid in the rotation.
The Lakers signed Jordan along with Dwight Howard this offseason to man the center position, although Anthony Davis saw a good chunk of time at the five before getting injured. Jordan finished his brief Lakers stint averaging 12.8 minutes, 4.1 points and 5.4 rebounds.
Lakers Add Capable Shoot in Augustin
The Lakers are in need of reliable shooting, and while Augustin isn’t a name that will sell jerseys, he serves that purpose.
Augustin appeared in 34 games for Houston this season, averaging 5.4 points, 1.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 15.0 minutes per game. In 955 career games for Charlotte, Indiana, Toronto, Chicago, Detroit, Oklahoma City, Denver, Orlando, Milwaukee and Houston, Augustin has averaged 9.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. Across his 14-year career, Augustin has shot 38 percent from three-point range and has shot above 40 percent from three in six separate seasons.
The Lakers were inactive at the trade deadline and didn’t make any moves during a slow buyout market. So the Lakers are hoping Augustin can help beef up the rotation and help the team get firmly back into the playoff picture. The Lakers are currently 27-33 and in ninth place in the Western Conference.
“Like I keep reiterating, the record at this point, we’re not going to close the gap in one night,” Westbrook said after the All-Star break. “As the season goes on, we’ve got 20 or so games left. We have to make sure we find out a way to know how we best play…We just have to lock in and focus on things that are important.
“Regardless of what position we’re in, we’ve got to beat whoever to get wherever we need to get to. So it don’t matter when you play them. If we play them early, cool. If we play them later, that’s cool too. So to me it really doesn’t matter. Just making sure that our minds are in the right place and we’ve got our energy and effort moving in the right direction.”