The Los Angeles Lakers made sweeping changes to the roster at the NBA trade deadline and the results have been very promising. Los Angeles has been able to win games even with D’Angelo Russell and LeBron James injured to keep the team’s playoff hopes alive.
This entire time the team has had room to add help to the roster as well. Dating back to when the team waived Matt Ryan, the Lakers have been operating with a 14-man roster. This gives them the ability to bring in any external help without making any other roster changes.
Los Angeles did not strike on the first wave of buyout signings, nor the players that were made available shortly after. Instead, the team held on to its open roster spot and could be considering using it if all goes well with someone that they bring in to work out.
The latest player that Los Angeles is showing some interest in (enough interest to work them out) will be surprising to fans, as it adds to an area of the roster that is already deep enough: the backcourt.
The Lakers could bring Kemba Walker in for a workout to add another ball-handler on the roster 👀 pic.twitter.com/J9DHDfTAW4
— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) March 5, 2023
According to Peter Dewey of Lakers Daily, sources have indicated that the Lakers may be interested in bringing Kemba Walker in for a workout.
NBA rumors: Lakers’ interest in Kemba Walker makes no sense.
While Kemba Walker is a big name and casual fans may be excited about it for that reason, adding him to this roster makes absolutely no sense. Of course, Los Angeles potentially being interested in bringing him in for a workout does not mean he is going to sign with the team but it also still seems like a waste of time.
Los Angeles has plenty of guards on the roster, specifically ball-handling guards. D’Angelo Russell and Dennis Schroder are more than enough while the team also has the likes of Austin Reaves, Malik Beasley and Lonnie Walker in the backcourt.
Sure, you could make the case that the team might need Schroder insurance in case he also misses games with an injury like Russell but at that point, the Lakers would be in such a bad spot anyway. It is not like Walker is going to be able to come into town and save the season. There is a reason why he does not have an NBA roster spot.
Walker played nine games for the Dallas Mavericks this season and it did not go well. The former all-star averaged eight points and 2.1 assists in 16 minutes per game. He shot 42.1% from the field and 25% from three. He was inefficient offensively and is a huge liability on the defensive end.
Injuries have really derailed Walker’s career and it is a real shame as he is still only 32 years old. He might be a big name but Kemba Walker is far from what the Lakers need out of that 15th roster spot.