3 Los Angeles Lakers offseason mistakes that look even worse now
By Jason Reed
3. The Los Angeles Lakers not signing Nemanja Bjelica
The Los Angeles Lakers made a mistake in letting Alex Caruso walk away and they missed a great free-agent opportunity that was sitting there for the taking in Nemanja Bjelica. Bjelica was exactly what the Lakers needed then and he would fit so perfectly in the Lakers’ rotation.
Unlike Bazemore, Bjelica was coming off of a bad season in 2020-21 but like Bazemore, he has flipped what he did the prior season and has been great for the Golden State Warriors this season. Bjelica is an important part of the Warriors’ great early season.
Bjelica would have been perfect as a stretch option in the frontcourt that would have allowed the team to not sacrifice size, floor spacing, or even defense. Bjelica definitely is not a great defender but playing next to Anthony Davis he would be just fine.
The Lakers are dealing with a floor-spacing problem that is making Anthony Davis much worse than he should be. Davis is taking way too many jump shots and three-pointers because the paint is crowded with Russell Westbrook and traditional centers like Dwight Howard and DeAndre Jordan.
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Bjelica would obviously take a body out of the paint for Davis to operate without sacrificing the floor spacing in the slightest. Bjelica is shooting 37% from beyond the arc this season and his shot chart is much more appealing than Howard’s or Jordan’s.