11. Michael Beasley– SF/PF
Michael Beasley is a player who will have minimal impact on the success of the team next season, hence his position on this list, but that doesn’t mean he was not a good free agent signing. At this point of his career, Beasley is just slightly better than Lance Stephenson. The difference is the return on value for each player based on their salary.
Beasley was signed for just the veteran minimum, making his presence on the team much more reasonable.
Beasley is a very high usage, ranking in the 94th percentile for usage rate, isolation scorer who plays next to no defense. His defense is absolutely horrendous, but his offensive ability makes him a useful player for the bottom of the Lakers’ bench.
Before his signing the bench unit looked to be something like Rajon Rondo/ Josh Hart/ Lance Stephenson/ Kyle Kuzma/ Moritz Wagner with Ivaca Zubac and Svi Mykhailiuk receiving minutes here and there. Besides Kyle Kuzma, none of those players are those who can get their own shot at will.
Rondo is excellent at creating shots for others. Hart, Wagner, and Svi will likely be excellent at draining the shots created for them. But it felt like they could use another spark plug scorer who could come in for just a few minutes and create instant offense. Michael Beasley gives them that.
While this is valuable to have, his lack of defensive prowess will likely keep him glued to the bench for most of the season, especially in the playoffs.