Should Lakers Eye Channing Frye?
This past season Channing Frye averaged 11.1 Pts, 5.1 Reb, and 1.2 Ast for a Phoenix Suns team that surprised the league by winning forty-eight games. Since opting out of his contract the former 8th overall pick of the 2005 draft has garnered the attention of several clubs. The Lakers are one of those clubs that are rumored to be expressing interest in the 6-11 power forward.
The priority for the Lakers will be trying to convince Carmelo Anthony and/or LeBron James to sign with the team for the upcoming basketball season. However, adding Frye’s size and skill set to the roster would also be an impactful addition to the current roster.
Frye’s career 39% three-point field goal percentage is a testament to his ability to spread the floor and knock them down from long range. He averaged 37% from behind the arc last season from a stretch four position. Ryan Kelly, who played a similar role in Mike D’Antoni’s system, shot 34% from three on 290 less attempts.
If Frye were on the Lakers’ roster last year, his 5.1 rebounds a game would have been better than 12 other players. His 416 total rebounds would only trail that of Pau Gasol (580) and Jordan Hill (535).
Understandably, there are some particular concerns that could cause the Lakers to become vacillated with the idea of signing Frye: he is 31 years old and missed the entire 2012-2013 year after being diagnosed with an enlarged heart. However, Frye did play in all 82 games last season, which would be a welcomed sight after the horrendous luck the Lakers have been having over the last few years.
Frye is not the most illustrious free agent on the market, but he certainly could be an important complementary piece that should be considered if the Lakers are able to lure a superstar.