Spurs waive a perfect 10-day contract signing for the Lakers
By Jason Reed
NBA teams can now officially sign players to a 10-day contract and the Los Angeles Lakers have the roster space to take advantage of that. Los Angeles has been rolling with 14 roster spots since waiving Matt Ryan and it would be shocking if the team did not utilize that for a short-term boost.
The 10-day contract has multiple uses. On one hand, the team could use it to get depth while Anthony Davis is out without having to commit long-term to said depth. On the other hand, the team could also use a 10-day contract to try and unlock a sharpshooter for a potential longer-term fit (think Stanley Johnson from last season).
Thanks to the San Antonio Spurs, the Lakers now have the ability to potentially do both. San Antonio has given Los Angeles a perfect 10-day contract candidate that can only not provide depth while AD is out but also be a potential fit long-term if he can realize his shooting potential.
Gorgui Dieng makes sense for the Lakers after being waived by the Spurs.
The Boston Celtics traded Noah Vonleh and cash considerations to the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday. Gorgui Dieng was waived as a result in order to free up a roster spot to be able to acquire Vonleh.
However, the trade was seemingly for monetary reasons only as Vonleh was also waived by the Spurs alongside Dieng. Vonleh is not a target that makes sense for Los Angeles but Dieng is.
Dieng has only appeared in 13 games this season and is averaging 11.6 minutes per game. His basic box-score numbers are nothing to write home about with averages of 4.1 points and 3.2 rebounds.
There is still a spot for Dieng in the Lakers’ rotation, especially with Damian Jones not playing up to what the team expected. The hope was that Jones could be a backup big who could provide some floor spacing and shooting as he had some success doing so last season.
Dieng would be a far better candidate for that type of role. While he has struggled in a minuscule sample size this season, Dieng is a career 36.3% shooter from three. In the last two seasons combined before the 2022-23 season, he shot 42.8% in 1.7 attempts per game.
That is all the Los Angeles Lakers really need right now — someone with size that can actually help space the floor. Darvin Ham can give him 12 minutes a game to take 2-3 shots from beyond the arc without having to sacrifice size.
There is absolutely no risk to a 10-day contract and because he checks both boxes of size and the ability to shoot, Dieng may actually become a Laker sooner rather than later.