Lakers: Grading the additions of Wenyen Gabriel and D.J. Augustin
D.J. Augustin grade: B
Before the Lakers took a flier on him late in the season, Augustin was racking up DNPs for one of the worst teams in the league in Houston. At age 34 it was safe to assume that his best basketball was behind him.
The Lakers were desperate for a secondary playmaker off the bench that could also hit open 3-point shots all season, and Augustin had proven he could get that done throughout his career. They decided to bring him on board to try to salvage the season and squeak into the play-in game.
At the time he was signed there were plenty of Lakers fans who thought bringing him in made no sense and there was a bigger hole to plug at center. There were suggestions to take a chance on a younger player with upside at that spot instead.
Pelinka’s decision to opt for the point guard proved to be the right one because Augustin was able to work his way into the rotation and earn trust from the coaches. His veteran experience as a point guard for 14 years in the league added a calming presence to the second unit and helped limit the turnovers from that group.
Most 3-point shooters come to the Lakers and go on a cold streak from deep, but Augustin has been on fire since dawning the purple and gold. He has hit 50 percent of his 3-point attempts since he signed on a pretty decent sample size of 56 attempts.
Since most people thought it was a mistake to sign him and those expectations had to be taken into consideration when grading him, the B grade seems justified.
Should the Lakers bring him back?
If Augustin was a younger player this decision would be a no-brainer to bring him back as the backup point guard for next season. But at this point in his career, it would not be surprising to see him retire when this season is over.
Throughout his career, he has bounced around the league and has played for a bunch of bad teams. Considering how the Lakers will probably be in the play in range again next season, they might want to let Augustin have one last chance at a title or postseason run with another team.
If the Lakers did bring him back it would not be that bad an idea to have him play backup minutes at point again. The major concern with his game is that he is somewhat of a liability on defense and that is only getting worse with his quickness slowly diminishing as he gets older.