The Los Angeles Lakers might have just filled their biggest roster gap without anyone realizing it. While the headlines surrounding the purple and gold lately have been focused on Luka Doncic’s hot start and the frontcourt’s question marks, the Lakers’ G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, made a move that could end up paying off big.
With the first overall pick in the 2025 G League Draft, South Bay selected Dillon Jones, a 6-foot-5 wing out of Weber State.
The move did not attract media buzz, but Lakers fans should be paying attention. If there is one thing this roster is short on, it is defensive-minded wings with energy and size.
Dillon Jones might be the answer to one of the Lakers' biggest holes
Jones is not a random name pulled from nowhere either. He was actually the No. 26 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder and even played 54 games for them last season.
He got to be a rookie on a championship roster. That is not nothing, he knows what it is like to play in a winning environment.
Last season, he averaged modest numbers, just 2.5 points, 2.2 rebounds in about 10 minutes per game. Although those numbers do not jump, what stood out was how comfortable he looked doing the dirty work. He defends well and hustles, two things that have been hit or miss for the Lakers lately.
After OKC’s title run, the Thunder moved him to Washington to clear a roster spot, and the Wizards waived him. He did not have a glamorous offseason, but this new G League opportunity might actually be his way back in, and the Lakers might be the perfect team for it.
Los Angeles already having him in their system is huge. That means if he shows enough with South Bay, it should be an easy move to upgrade his deal to a two-way or standard contract. The Lakers would not even need to look outside their own organization to add a capable, ready-to-go wing.
So while everyone else is chasing the next big name, the Lakers might have just found something even better, the right kind of glue guy.