Lakers should sign this former draft target after being waived by Grizzlies
By Jason Reed
The biggest storyline surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers right now is a potential Kyrie Irving trade with the Brooklyn Nets. However, the team’s free agency decisions should not be lost on fans as that could be the true difference between being a playoff team and being a contender next season.
Rob Pelinka has shown a much-welcomed change of pace this offseason as instead of only signing older veterans, the team has prioritized youth. That does not mean that veteran signings are off the table but all four players the team has signed this offseason is under 30. Two players are under 25.
Promising young players keep hitting the market as well as teams waive players to make room on the roster. The Oklahoma City Thunder recently waived a potential dream free-agent target while the Memphis Grizzlies just waived someone who the Lakers were potentially targeting in the 2020 NBA Draft: Tyrell Terry.
ESPN’s Jonathan Givony penned the following about Terry and the Lakers prior to the 2020 NBA Draft (h/t Lakers Nation):
"“While many assume the defending champions will look toward more NBA-ready players, the Lakers seem to like Terry, who is getting looks as high as the late teens. His pure shooting stroke and creativity operating out of pick-and-roll are intriguing, considering his youth.”"
At the time, the Lakers had the 28th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. However, the team would eventually package that pick with Danny Green to Oklahoma City for Dennis Schroder. Terry wound up going three picks later as the Dallas Mavericks took him with the 31st overall pick.
Tyrell Terry could be an interesting project for the Lakers to sign in free agency.
Tyrell Terry’s NBA career has not exactly started off on a great note thus far but it is mostly because of a lack of opportunities. Terry was unable to earn a spot the rotation in his rookie season as he played a total of 56 minutes in 11 games.
The former Stanford Cardinal was waived by Dallas right before the 2021-22 season. He eventually signed a 10-day contract with Memphis under the hardship provision. Terry would play just a grand total of three minutes in Memphis before signing a two-way deal and spending all of his time in the G League.
Terry’s G League stats are not promising as he shot just 26.2% from three. That is a massive problem considering his jump shot was his biggest strength coming out of college. Terry shot 40.8% from three in 4.9 attempts per game.
Terry is not someone who is going to come in and be in the NBA rotation this upcoming season. However, the Lakers have one of the best scouting and developmental departments in the league and the team could bring Terry in with the intent of developing him down in South Bay.
We know the team at least liked him at some point with the reported interest before the 2020 NBA Draft. And if the Lakers can fix his shot, which already has potential, then he could become a playable rotation player in the NBA.
Sure, his professional career has not gone as planned but if the Lakers just view him as an undrafted free agent prospect then it makes a lot of sense. After all, he is still only 21 years old. He probably would have benefitted from just staying in college, and if he was coming into the draft this year (assuming he continued to develop at Stanford) then he would have been a first-round pick.
There is literally no risk in making this kind of signing. With existing interest already there, the Lakers should take a chance on Tyrell Terry.