The Los Angeles Lakers have been reeling over the last month and are searching for answers at every turn. With the team battling injuries and needing more production out of the two-way contract spots, the Lakers have made two different signings in the last week.
First, the team signed Dylan Windler to a two-way deal and waived forward Alex Fudge. Los Angeles followed that move by signing Skylar Mays, who was waived by the Blazers earlier in the week, to a two-way contract. D'Moi Hodge was waived to make room for Mays.
It is important not to overstate how impactful these two-way signings will be. These are not guys who are going to suddenly turn the ship around for the Lakers. That being said, Mays does have some really fun potential and Lakers fans saw that firsthand earlier in the season against the Blazers.
Skylar Mays did well when he got minutes in Portland.
— Late Night Lake Show (@LateNightLakers) January 8, 2024
This was Mays vs the Lakers this season
15 PTS
4 REB
12 AST
1 TO
7/13 FG
pic.twitter.com/FIJZ2if1s0
Skylar Mays torched the Lakers earlier in the season
To be fair, the Lakers beat the Blazers twice in one week when Mays was playing so it is not like his strong games impacted the result at all. That being said, it is impossible to ignore what he did in those two games and the Lakers' front office obviously remembered.
Mays scored a combined 30 points with 20 assists and nine rebounds in the two games. In one of the games he shot 0-4 from three and in the other he shot 3-7. His combined field goal percentage in the two November games was 48.1%.
Does this mean the Lakers are getting someone who is going to average 15 points, 10 assists and 4.5 rebounds a night? Not at all. But they at least have someone on a two-way deal who can step up when the team is shorthanded and put together a serviceable night. That is not something the Lakers had in Fudge or Hodge.
It is clear that the Lakers didn't covet Fudge or Hodge as long-term developmental pieces and it was better to get someone in the building who could actually play for the NBA team when needed. That is why the team brought in both Windler and Mays, with Mays being the more exciting of the two.