Los Angeles Lakers: Potential buyout candidates on league’s worst teams
By Jason Reed
3. Aron Baynes, Toronto Raptors
I did not expect to include the Toronto Raptors in this kind of article when the season began. To be fair, though, there were some signs that this regression could be possible for the Raptors just two years after winning the title.
The first sign is that the advanced numbers for Pascal Siakam are not fantastic and he came down to earth after a scorching start last season. He is averaging a solid 19.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per game but has not been all-that efficient.
Siakam ranks 65/88 in eFG% among forwards with at least 100 minutes played, 44/88 in Box Plus-Minus and 42/88 in VORP. He has not been the star that the Raptors were hoping he would be.
Mix that with the fact that the Raptors are not even playing in Toronto and that the depth is not fantastic and I feel fairly comfortable in saying that they will remain out of the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference, especially after an ugly 2-6 start.
That puts Aron Baynes, who has been part of the problem, as a potential buyout candidate. Baynes has been really bad this season and has not been able to help replace Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol. Baynes is averaging just 5.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game this season.
Next. 3 players LA could trade Alfonzo McKinnie for. dark
However, as is true with the other two players on this list, Baynes would provide something to the rotation that is not currently there and would likely be maximized better in the Lakers’ rotation. He is not as good of a shot-blocker as Dieng or Lopez but he still provides a decent rebounding and scoring option around the rim.