Getty Doug McDermott, Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers may be done with their off-season roster reconstruction following the addition of Patrick Beverley.
However, should they decide to continue searching for floor spacers, Doug McDermott could end up being back on their radar. In a September 7 article for Bleacher Report, Greg Swartz noted how McDermott is highly likely to find himself on the trade block during the season.
“One of the game’s best three-point shooters, McDermott finished seventh overall in outside accuracy last season (42.2 percent). While most of these came off of catch-and-shoot attempts, the 30-year-old was even better on pull-up threes (43.2 percent).
McDermott won’t bring much else to the table as a defender, rebounder, or playmaker, but he’s an elite shooter who would thrive next to a shot-creator like LeBron James, Luka Doncic, or Chris Paul,” Swartz wrote.
It’s no secret that Los Angeles needs additional shooters – especially if they’re banking on the trio of Russell Westbrook, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis to work, as all three are at their best when working inside of the perimeter, and that only works if there’s enough shooting around them to keep defenses spaced out.
Westbrook to Attend LeBron’s Players Only Camp
A big sign that Westbrook is preparing for his second season with the Lakers is the fact that he is reportedly expected to join up with LeBron and the rest of his teammates at James’ players-only camp – as reported by Marc Stein.
“The Lakers’ LeBron James typically hosts a players-only minicamp somewhere on the West Coast before training camp starts, so stay tuned. Word is that another Lakers’ minicamp is likely in the coming days and that Russell Westbrook would indeed attend if it comes together…Any sort of pre-camp gathering involving LeBron and his fellow purple-and-gold vets would represent a key step in the Lakers’ efforts to move past all the tension that bubbled throughout last season’s rocky 33-49 campaign, bringing James and Anthony Davis together with Westbrook and the newly acquired Patrick Beverley before the Lakers report for their first practices under new coach Darvin Ham on Sept. 26,” Stein wrote in his Stein Line Newsletter.
Labor Day edition of my around-the-league notes column has just been dispatched worldwide … filled with EuroBasket tales, fresh rumbles on numerous teams (including Sixers/Lakers/Mavs/Knicks/Jazz), coaching goss and much, much more:
Assuming Westbrook is set to see out the final year of his current contract with the Lakers, it would make perfect sense for the front office to dip their toes back into the trade market in search of additional shooting – and McDermott would fit the bill perfectly.
Last season, McDermott averaged 11.3 points per game while shooting 42.2% from deep on five attempts per game.
Patrick Beverley Expects Things to Work With Westbrook
When the Lakers announced the addition of Beverley via trade, fans quickly began to question whether his addition would spell the end of Westbrook’s tenure with the team – as the duo has a history between them.
However, when speaking about his fit alongside Westbrook during a recent interview, Beverley revealed that he’s excited to share the floor with the superstar guard and feels the duo could be a good fit together.
“A player with that competitive spirit, that fire, that will, that dog, that nastiness, that grit, to have a running mate like that, I have never had that. So I am super excited to see where it goes. Obviously like any relationship or any marriage, things, we are going to have tough conversations. That is what comes with winning, but I am excited about those conversations, I am excited about the practices. I am just excited to be able to compete with someone like that,” Beverley told the media when discussing his potential partnership with Westbrook.
Patrick Beverley says he’s excited to play with Russell Westbrook. He thinks the two complement each other well and will fit. He says he’s never played with someone who has the same grit and toughness as him. He also acknowledged they’ll have tough conversations at some point.
Still, it will be interesting to see how the partnership plays out throughout the season – and given the limited amount of shooting within the rotation right now, it’s worth keeping a close eye of the front office’s movements moving forward.