Los Angeles Lakers: Injuries have created opportunity for Michael Beasley

With all of the injuries on the Los Angeles Lakers, Michael Beasley has a great opportunity to shine.

When Los Angeles Lakers forward, Michael Beasley, was first drafted number two overall in the 2008 NBA Draft by Miami, he was considered a can’t-miss prospect who had loads of potential. However, he lacked the focus and commitment that one needs to become a superstar. As a result, he became relegated to something of a journeyman, and at one point he even played two different stints in China since no NBA team wanted him.

Last summer, Beasley was signed by the purple and gold to add depth to a team that had the vision of being a modern-day iteration of President of Basketball Operations Magic Johnson’s Showtime teams of the 80’s. So far this season however, he has barely played, both due to a glut of players at the forward position and also due to his ailing mom, who recently passed away from cancer.

But now the Lakers have been snake-bit by injuries. First LeBron James strained his groin in their Christmas Day win in Golden State and will miss at least one more week, although team officials privately expected him to miss “several games” right after the injury occurred. Then Rajon Rondo, the veteran, world champion and grizzled vet who was supposed to stabilize this team and teach them how to win, sprained a ligament in his ring finger and is expected to be out for at least three more weeks.

To make matters worse, Kyle Kuzma, who took his game to a new level in December by averaging 22.2 points on 48 percent shooting, 7.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists a game, suffered a back contusion and has been listed as day-to-day. He missed their last game on January 4 against the New York Knicks.

Whenever key players on a team are injured and have to miss games, it always creates an opportunity for guys towards the end of the rotation, or even those who haven’t been playing at all, to get playing time and prove that they can ball.

This is the opportunity that Michael Beasley figures to have now and in the near future, at least until the self-proclaimed Greatest of All Time is able to return from his groin injury.

In their loss to the Knicks, Beasley played 11 minutes and change. He didn’t really assert himself much, but he did make two of three shots from the field, hit two free throws, grabbed four rebounds, and notched one assist.

Beasley is a player who is looking to have a renaissance and change the lackluster narrative that has always dogged him. Yet he is just days away from his 30th birthday, which makes him young enough to have several more productive years if he performs and gets enough of an opportunity.

With LeBron and Kuzma out for the time being, the Lakers need guys who can not only score points, but do so efficiently. You would figure that Brandon Ingram would fill that void, but in the last two games he has shot a paltry 16-for-42, which is about 38 percent from the field.

They also need guys who will rebound the ball and play some defense. They have been out-rebounded in four of their last five games, all four of which have been losses. Last season with the Knicks, Beasley averaged nine rebounds per 36 minutes, which shows that he has the ability to help the Lakers limit their opponent to one shot and ignite their transition game.

Perhaps the model Beasley should follow is that of Hall of Famer Bob McAdoo. In his first eight seasons he averaged nearly 27 points a game while making five All-Star teams, leading the league in scoring three straight years and winning the league MVP award in 1974-75.

However, he played on bad or mediocre teams during that time, which led to a narrative that he was a selfish player. After being waived by the New Jersey Nets in December 1981, the Lakers picked him up because big-name free agent acquisition Mitch Kupchak – yes, that Mitch Kupchak – suffered a horrific knee injury while Kareem Abdul-Jabbar went down with a sprained ankle.

All he did for the purple and gold was give them a big man who could score buckets and run the floor off the bench, and he played a key role in helping them win the NBA World Championship that season. For good measure, he won a second ring with Showtime in 1985, and suddenly no one remembered or even cared about his lost years with the Buffalo Braves in the mid-70’s.

Beasley has a chance right now to show head coach Luke Walton that he can help right the sinking Lakers ship until reinforcements return. If he does so, it should increase the chances of his career having the kind of happy ending that McAdoo’s did.