Isaiah Thomas: Pursue
After an incredible Boston tenure, culminated with an MVP-caliber season and a crushing hip injury, Isaiah Thomas is finally 100% healthy after three years. That is what doctors said and medical data proved.
That sounds like encouraging news for Thomas, who spent the last three years playing on a leg. Despite that, he managed to put together 12.8 points and 3.8 assists per game.
For the backup point guard role on Los Angeles Lakers roster Thomas represents an interesting option. We already talked about the fact that the purple and gold do not have the time and flexibility to take risks and experiments, but Thomas could turn out more than that.
Following his declarations about his health, it would take him a workout to prove he is still legit. And the Lakers already have familiarity with him, his personality and playing style, having had him as part of the roster on the final stretch of the 2018 season. At that juncture, he proved extremely solid for LA (despite being in his injured time frame) averaging 15.6 points and 5 assists.
Of course, healthy or not, he remains a liability on the defensive end. His size does not help him. But if he really is able to return somewhat close to his Boston days on a reduced role, he should be a no brainer. His offensive impact would make up for the defensive shortcomings.
Thomas looks like the perfect player to lead the bench unit and drag the team while LeBron is sitting on the bench. Money-wise, he is not certainly in the condition to command big money. A chance and a minimum contract is all he is looking for but there is still good chances that his value might be much more than that.
LA’s front office needs to collect all the necessary data and information and take a deep look at Isaiah. He certainly deserves to be considered a sleeper on this set-to-be-poor market.