NBA rumors: Warriors work out multiple players from Lakers’ scrap heap
By Jason Reed
There are certain teams that know how to get the most out of players and maximize them in the rotation. The Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors are two of those teams.
Time and time again players sign with either the Lakers or Warriors and raise their stock in the process. Both teams are proficient in scouting and development and have fostered environments that allow players to blossom and be at their best.
Not every player works out for either team and if a player ends up struggling in LA or in the Bay then that typically means there is not much to offer. If a player struggles in both places then that is not a great sign at all for their future NBA career.
Several players are looking to avoid that fate and potentially turn their careers around with the Golden State Warriors, who still have less than 15 players on the roster and are looking for veteran depth. There are not many options currently on the market, so Golden State may end up turning to players who did not pan out in Los Angeles to remedy the situation.
According to Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype, the Warriors recently welcomed several veteran players to work out for the team. Three of the seven veterans who were brought in recently spent time in Los Angeles.
"“The Golden State Warriors continue to host NBA veterans for workouts. Recent participants included former Warriors Kent Bazemore, Juan Toscano-Anderson and Dewayne Dedmon, along with free agents Will Barton, Jaylen Nowell, Stanley Johnson and Derrick Favors, league sources told HoopsHype.”"
NBA Rumors: Warriors working out players from the Lakers’ scrap heap
Fans who watched Kent Bazemore and Juan Toscano-Anderson know that the Warriors are not going to get much out of either player. Ironically enough, both players spent time on the Warriors before coming to the Lakers and were terrible once they arrived in LA.
Bazemore came off a solid bounce-back year for Golden State in 2020-21 that landed him on the 2021-22 Lakers. Despite getting the opportunity to play a big role for the purple and gold, Bazemore quickly proved that he was not worth a rotation spot. He did not play in the NBA last season.
Toscano-Anderson was among a flurry of signings for the Lake Show in 2022. It quickly became clear that he was brought to LA because he is a Klutch Sports client. It did not take long after that for Toscano-Anderson to play his way out of the rotation and eventually get traded as part of the Russell Westbrook trade.
The one former Laker who has a lot of potential in Golden State is Stanley Johnson. It hasn’t quite worked out for Johnson in his NBA career yet but he has shown a lot of potential, particularly in Los Angeles.
At only 27 years old, the ship has not sailed for Johnson to unlock something in his game and reach a new level. With a solid jump shot and a good defensive foundation, Golden State could actually turn JOhnson into an impactful three-and-D role player if he were to join the team.