Los Angeles Lakers: Which player will be the hardest to replace?

3. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

Just to be clear: this is a ranking of the hardest to replace, not the most talented. Right now, you could easily make the case that KCP is the most talented player on this list, but he is not the hardest to replace.

KCP’s tenure with the Los Angeles Lakers has been a really interesting one. The Lakers have paid KCP a lot over the last three years, probably more than they should have, and for a while, it looked like he was just a salary cap filler.

However, that flipped in the NBA Playoffs when KCP played really solid defense and hit some big threes for the Lakers. He was not good every night but he did have several nights where he would hit a very key shot that would swing the game.

This is an interesting situation as KCP has the leverage in being a Klutch client and performing so well in the NBA Playoffs. However, the Los Angeles Lakers seem too smart to overpay for him, so he is probably gone.

Quite frankly, though, there are so many three-point specialists and good perimeter defenders in the league that the Lakers should have no problem finding someone who can offer what KCP did. Heck, even if they don’t they have an internal option in Alex Caruso who is a better defender and has potential as a three-point shooter.