Lakers news: 3 things Wenyen Gabriel can bring to the team

The Los Angeles Lakers getting new players on the roster is the biggest Lakers news at the moment, even if the team is not getting big-name players. The Lakers released DeAndre Jordan to make room to sign DJ Augustin in a move that will go down as rather pointless and released Sekou Doumbouya to sign Wenyen Gabriel to a two-way contract.

Gabriel is expected to be with the Lakers at the NBA level full-time.

Most Laker fans are likely unfamiliar with Gabriel, who has only appeared in 58 career NBA games over the last three seasons. This Lakers news may not seem like anything of note, but with Frank Vogel saying that he believes Gabriel has upside, there is at least some hope that he can bring something to the team.

The Lakers are great at scouting talent of this level and turning them into contributors. When it comes to Gabriel’s game, he does bring certain elements that make us hopeful that he can contribute in some capacity in the rotation.

3 things that Wenyen Gabriel can bring to the Los Angeles Lakers:

1. Legitimate power forward depth 

One of the biggest issues that I personally had with the Los Angeles Lakers heading into the season was the lack of power forward depth on the roster. Anthony Davis was the team’s only true power forward and if Davis ever got hurt (which he obviously did) then it would be an issue for LA.

The two options to play at the four have been Carmelo Anthony and Trevor Ariza. Anthony is fine as a shooter but is not a traditional four and Ariza has been awful (and also is not a traditional four). The Lakers really could have benefited from getting a true four on the roster instead of a second center and finally they have realized that.

Height-wise Gabriel is not that much bigger than Carmelo or Ariza as he is six-nine. However, he is more traditional as a power forward and is someone who can actually bring a positive rebounding presence to the team — averaging 7.3 rebounds in 22.6 minutes played per game in his G League career.

2. A stretch four presence

The Lakers need players in the frontcourt who can space the floor when Russell Westbrook is on the court and Gabriel can absolutely do that. While he is not a knockdown three-point shooter by any means and has had his struggles, he has also had his period where he is red-hot from beyond the arc.

Overall in the G League, Gabriel’s career percentage on threes is 35.8%. He has attempted 57 threes in the NBA and is shooting 36.8%. He has proven that with more playing time he is more comfortable hitting shots, though.

He played the most games of his career in the NBA last year with the New Orleans Pelicans. In 21 games played, Gabriel shot over 40% from beyond the arc.

3. Decent defense

The best part of Gabriel potentially adding a true four and a shooting presence is the fact that he is not a defensive liability. He definitely is not someone who we are going to call a defensive specialist but he was an above-average defender at the G League level and more than held his own in his time playing in the NBA.

The Lakers really struggle on the defensive end and Augustin only added to the problem. It is nice to see the team bringing in an athletic four who can actually hold his own on the defensive end coming off the bench.