Projecting the statistics for the Lakers reserves:
PG: Jalen Hood-Schifino
PROJECTED STATLINE: Incomplete
JHS comes aboard beaming with potential as a rookie point guard. However, with so much proven talent already on the roster, it is tough to gauge what his individual numbers could look like this season.
The likeliest scenario for him involves suiting up in his jersey with the South Bay Lakers for a majority of his on-court minutes and suiting up in his warm-ups with the big leaguers to absorb as much knowledge and wisdom as he can from his veteran teammates.
F: Maxwell Lewis
PROJECTED STATLINE: Incomplete
Lewis is built like a prototypical NBA wing. However, he still needs to pack on a decent amount of weight before he will be ready to battle against his professional peers in real NBA minutes. With that in mind, he should join JHS in the G League for a good chunk of the season as he continues to learn the ropes. Those two should dominate against minor league opponents, and that domination this year could translate to a ton of confidence looking ahead to next year.
F: Cam Reddish
PROJECTED STATLINE: 8 MPG | 4 PPG | 2 RPG | 1 APG | 0.5 SPG | 0 BPG | 41/33/80%
Reddish comes to Los Angeles as a 23-year-old “veteran” who is still looking to establish his legitimacy in the NBA ranks. The tools are all there physically, and he should have a massive chip on his shoulder to prove himself this year. However, he has his work cut out for him with so many other guys who have already proven themselves at this level.
Hopefully, these projections listed above are inaccurate and he proves his doubters wrong this season, but that is something we are all going to have to witness firsthand to believe.
C: Jaxson Hayes
PROJECTED STATLINE: 8 MPG | 4 PPG | 2.5 RPG | 0 APG | 0 SPG | 0.5 BPG | 65/0/69%
A few weeks ago, it looked like Hayes was in store for a pretty big role for the Lakers this year. However, after the front office came to terms with Christian Wood, it now looks as if Hayes will be the tertiary option as far as big men go for this year’s team.
He is very limited as to what he can do offensively, but similar to some of the other youngsters a majority of his mark will be left on the defensive end. His energy is where he will earn his minutes, and he should still receive opportunities to get on the court as long as he keeps his head on straight.