Luol Deng
In some ways, Luol Deng doesn’t fit on this list as he has a guaranteed contract for $18 million a year for the next three years. So what’s he doing here!
Depending on how this year goes, Deng is either going to count his money from the end of a bench on some team or have an opportunity to play meaningful minutes for someone (maybe even the Lakers) during the rest of his contract and (gasp!) beyond.
Last year could not have been worse for Deng. His minutes (26.5), points (7.6) and field goal percentage (38.7 percent) were all career lows and his play was so poor he was shut down for the year just two games after the All-Star break.
Meanwhile, after the All-Star break, Brandon Ingram’s averages all were better than Deng’s year as Ingram posted 47.5 percent shooting and 13.2 points in 32.1 minutes per game. Combined with Brandon’s play in his lone summer league game it is hard to see where Deng’s minutes will come from this year.
Luol Deng’s play was either a bad year on a bad team or else the sign that his career is all but over. If Deng can show in reserve minutes that he can contribute to the Lakers as a veteran of his experience should he has a chance to extend his career.
For Lakers fans, it would be great to see Deng as something more than a colossal mistake we will be paying for over the next three years. So I for one am rooting for Deng!