Lakers: 5 Biggest Mistakes From First Half of Season

No. 5 Including Robert Sacre, Ryan Kelly, Nick Young on the Roster

Almost no one expected Sacre, Kelly, or Young to make the squad this season. There were unsubstantiated reports that the front office explored trade options for all three over the summer, but no move was made in the end.

Sacre and Kelly were destined to play little, but took spots from younger players the team could have picked up either from the D-League, the pool of undrafted players, or from players who were cut by their teams at the end of the preseason. There is no guarantee such players would have made a difference, but better to give someone whose potential is unknown a chance than wasting time and space on someone who is clearly not going to be a part of the team’s future.

Young wore out his welcome last year and it was very surprising to everyone that he was still around this season. The biggest reason is that the front office failed to address the huge gap at small forward during the offseason and, with Kobe Bryant’s availability from night to night uncertain, Young was the only experienced player on the roster who was capable of playing the three. For this reason, it was inevitable that, not only would Young make the squad, but he was going to play.

If the team was smart, they would have added young talent instead of wasting valuable roster spots while playing Sacre instead of Tarik Black and Young instead of Anthony Brown.

Next: No. 4 The Handling of Kobe's Workload