Los Angeles Lakers fans are excited to see their new-look team hit the hardwood next month?
Darn right they are.
Debate the many moves they made all you want. What we do know is that the Lakers will be one of the most interesting teams to watch this season. Not only is there no LeBron James after eight years, but Luka Doncic is set to make an MVP bid, Austin Reaves should take another leap and the many new additions will show if they were in fact worth the money … and in Walker Kessler’s case, the assets.
One player fans have gushed about over the last two months is Georgian big man Sandro Mamukelashvili. As Mamukelashvili lit it up playing for the national team over the summer, Lakers fans sat back and pictured the many 3-pointers off a Doncic bullet pass he could hit in those new purple-and-gold threads.
New Lakers Big Man Praised for His Scoring Ability
No one is ready to mistake that No. 54 for No. 24, but Mamukelashvili could absolutely provide the Lakers with some sneaky good scoring in his role. One reason why he’ll excel in Los Angeles? His ability to rack up buckets, writes Lake Show Life’s Tyler Watts.
“The Lakers made a four-year, $52 million bet on Mamu after a breakout season with the Toronto Raptors,” Watts wrote. “The 6’9 big man shot 38.9 percent from 3-point range and showcased some unique scoring and playmaking chops. LA clearly thinks that was just the beginning.”
The 27-year-old big man is no Pau Gasol, but playing alongside Mr. Magic? You can pencil him in for a chunk of points each night. And not a single point will come off a bad shot.
“Mamukelashvili is elite in transition and keeps improving. He will efficiently get buckets and should be even better playing off Luka,” Watts continued. “Giving Doncic a stretch big man who wants to run should result in elite offense. Lakers fans will quickly fall in love with Mamu.”
Will He Pay Off for L.A.?
Paying a potential starter $13 million per season on average is not huge money in today’s NBA, but the Lakers sure wouldn’t want to be two years into Mamukelashvili’s contract with $26 million left to pay knowing he hasn’t brought much value.
But there are plenty of reasons to believe Mamukelashvili will be a home-run signing. After all, the head coach is already completely bought in.
“I remember when we did our free agency call with him,” head coach JJ Redick said during a recent interview. “… He said something like, ‘Where do you see me in the lineup? What do you view me as?’ I said, ‘Don’t get me started on positions right now; I hate positions. I view you as a basketball player. Him alone, he is gonna drive a lot of that versatility that we have.”
Redick also noted that Mamukelashvili could log some minutes at backup center, where the Lakers are still especially deficient.
Mamukelashvili has his warts — no one ever accused him of being Dennis Rodman … or even Naz Reid (no offense) — but there is no reason why he can’t be an entirely positive player for the Lakers if he is used in the correct role every time he takes the court.
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