Roundtable: Lakers Off-Season In Review

WHAT WAS THE LAKER BEST MOVE OF THE OFF-SEASON?

December 28, 2012; Oakland, CA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers shooting guard Nick Young (1) dunks the ball against the Golden State Warriors during the third quarter at ORACLE Arena. The Warriors defeated the 76ers 96-89. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Lopez – Signing Nick Young to a two-year veteran minimum deal with a player option for the 2nd year. Nick Young gives the Lakers an explosive scorer who can help keep Kobe off the court for longer periods of time than he was allowed last season. Young also gives the Lakers some youth and a player who can play either shooting guard or small forward. The versatility, team-friendly contract, and youth make this the Lakers best move of the offseason.

Rude – Absolutely has to be getting Nick Young on the vets minimum. Agree with his play-style or not, he’s a talented player who came back home to Los Angeles on a huge discount. Last season, Young made $5.6 million. This year, he’ll make $1.1 million, with an option for the second year. Sure, he may not mesh perfectly with the squad, but at the price he’s coming in at, he’s an absolute steal.

Cottrell – Drafting Ryan Kelly. While we were doing draft profiles, Ryan Kelly was my third most wanted player for the Lakers, so when the two players I had higher than him went earlier in the draft, I was really excited when the Lakers grabbed Kelly. The former Blue Devil could be the perfect fit in Mike D’Antoni’s system, thanks to his great size, and his awesome three point shooting. I really liked the Lakers only draft pick.

Booth – I’ll go with the Kaman signing. Again, with the loss of Howard, the Lakers had a glaring hole at the center position. Pau Gasol will likely see extended minutes at center this year, but a solid vet in Kaman should fit in nicely there as well. And who knows, perhaps with Gasol at power forward, he and Kaman may find the chemistry together Gasol could never find last year with Howard. Solid pick-up.

Gilbert – The Lakers signed Jordan Farmar, who seemed to be off the radar for most teams this summer, having played this past season in Turkey. Farmar played a role in the Lakers championships in 2009 and 2010 as the backup point guard to Derek Fisher. As Drew Garrison from SBNation’s Silver Screen and Roll blog thoroughly analyzed in a post a few weeks ago, Farmar fits the bill for the ideal D’Antoni point guard for this particular Lakers basketball team. He’s crafty in the way that he can get to the rim, is great at using screens from his teammates, and he can play off-ball exceptionally, which is huge on a team where Kobe Bryant will still be the primary ball-handler, especially when Steve Nash is on the bench which will be the case most often when Farmar is in the game.

Garcia – Chris Kaman.  After Dwight left, the frontline lacked solidarity.  While the athleticism of Farmar, Young, and Johnson are all appealing, Kaman provides pick and roll tools; post game, midrange game, and ability to drive from the high block.  He’s a solid team defender, and should be able to blend well with Pau Gasol, especially on Horns plays.