3 Lakers who are pointless to have on the 2022-23 roster
By Jason Reed
3. Wenyen Gabriel
We named Wenyen Gabriel as one of the Lakers that are most likely to not finish the 2022-23 season with the team. The reason for that is because his fit on this roster is peculiar and as soon as the Lakers need to include a contract in a trade or waive someone to make room he is a candidate.
Gabriel came to the Lakers last season and was able to provide minutes to a team that desperately needed them but it was not like he was fantastic. He has an odd skill set that does not really fit today’s game or fit with how this roster is.
Gabriel is essentially a four but he cannot shoot, making him more of a small-ball five than anything else. When Anthony Davis is hurt and you do not have good centers having Gabriel makes more sense.
However, the Lakers are obviously hoping that Davis won’t be hurt this season and they have improved at the center position with both Thomas Bryant and Damian Jones. It is hard to find an avenue for Gabriel to get a consistent role on this team with what he offers.
That could change if he shows improvement in training camp but at the end of the day, Gabriel will likely be someone who does not play much on the Lakers and is more of a roster filler until the team can improve.