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Los Angeles Lakers: 3 young free agents LA could sign next

By Jason Reed

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 29: Garrison Mathews #24 of the Washington Wizards warms up prior to the game against the Indiana Pacers at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2021 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 29: Garrison Mathews #24 of the Washington Wizards warms up prior to the game against the Indiana Pacers at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2021 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers
(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers /

1. Garrison Mathews

Garrison Mathews is far and away the best young option for the Los Angeles Lakers to sign at this point in free agency. There was ta least a conversation to be had between him and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk but with the latter signing with the Toronto Raptors, Mathews is the guy.

The intrigue with Mathews is his three-point shooting and the added shooting depth that he would add to the Lakers. While the backcourt is rather crowded, Mathews can play the three and still gives the Lakers a solid shooting wing.

There is nothing wrong with having even more shooting depth, especially with the volatility of some of the players on the Lakers roster. There will naturally be someone who disappoints and is not shooting as expecting and having another great shooter to counteract that regression is huge.

Mathews is 24 years old and has two years under his belt. He has played a combined 82 games and has a career three-point percentage of 38.9%. It is a small sample size, but it is still an entire season’s worth of shooting essentially that he was proficient in.

He is not a defensive stopper but he is also not a liability on the defensive end. With Frank Vogel, Mathews could definitely be a league-average defender at worst.

The only thing working against Mathews is the depth at the position he plays and the potential (not guarantee) that the Lakers may look to add to the frontcourt instead. If that is the case, there are two other young free agents who are not as polished but could have some potential.

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