The Los Angeles Lakers may have made the same mistake twice. First, it was Alex Caruso. Now, it might be Jordan Goodwin.
Goodwin did not put up wild numbers or make headlines with game-winning shots, but he brought the kind of toughness, defense, and role-player IQ every good team needs. Instead of finding a way to keep him, the Lakers let him go.
All that might sound familiar? Well, that is because Lakers’ fans have seen this before. The Caruso decision is still one of the most frustrating “what-ifs” in recent Lakers memory.
The team let him walk in 2021, thinking they could replace him easily. They never did. Caruso won another title (last season with the Oklahoma City Thunder), and the Lakers were left looking for a player like him.
Jordan Goodwin could be the Lakers’ next regret
Now there is a chance it will happen again, this time with Jordan Goodwin. According to Jovan Buha, he was “an awesome fit” on this roster.
Goodwin is a guard who defended, rebounded, made smart cuts, and earned his minutes. Buha even said Goodwin was better than some of the players who made the final roster.
Goodwin clawed his way into JJ Redick’s rotation, eventually earning a standard deal after starting the season on a two-way. He averaged 5.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.0 steals in 29 games.
He even impressed to the point where he was given the starting nod for five games. The numbers he displayed were solid production for a back-of-the-rotation guy who was not being handed anything.
What made things complicated was the addition of Marcus Smart, because with him came a roster crunch. The Lakers needed to make space, and Goodwin became the odd man out.
The move made sense on paper. But if Lakers’ fans have learned anything from Caruso, it is that these types of decisions do not always hit until later. That is the big risk here.
Goodwin has a game that is built for playoff basketball. He does the little things, he plays with heart, he hustles and plays with an edge. Buha even mentioned that if his offensive game continues to grow, letting him go “could easily become a mistake.”
No one is saying that Goodwin was about to be the third star behind Luka Doncic and LeBron James. But he was a rare fit. He was young and hungry. He was the kind of guy who fills in the cracks between stars. The Lakers let him go anyway.
Chances are, Goodwin is not going to turn into a Caruso 2.0. If he ends up being a key rotation piece for a contender this season, it will definitely feel like Deja vu. Letting Goodwin go may end up as another reminder that sometimes, the Lakers do not realize what they have until it is gone.