The Los Angeles Lakers have been rounding into form as of late as they’ve recorded some impressive wins to keep their hopes of moving up the Western Conference standings alive.
What makes the Lakers’ recent stretch so impressive is they’ve been shorthanded as they’ve got several players on the mend. Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt remained sidelined, while Christian Wood is still working his way back from a knee injury.
The Vanderbilt and Wood injuries particularly hurt because it saps the front court depth on the roster. Even Colin Castleton is out with a fractured wrist, so Los Angeles went out and signed Harry Giles III to a two-way contract and waived Dylan Windler.
Head coach Darvin Ham acknowledged the Giles signing was to shore up the big man depth on the team, but believes Giles still has untapped potential.
“I think it’s the latter,” Ham said. “Obviously I he’s a really good young player and he was available, so we saw the opportunity to gain a little more insurance at that position with a couple guys out in C-Wood and Colin. But also someone that we can take a long, hard look at in terms of implementing him into the program. I feel like he still has a ton of upside, he just needed to get to the right program and we have the coaches to try to help him get better.”
Injuries plagued what looked like a promising professional career for Giles who was taken in the first round of the 2017 NBA Draft. Giles spent his first few years with the Sacramento Kings before shuffling between the NBA and G League.
Giles was most recently with the Brooklyn Nets but now comes to the Lakers in hopes of rehabbing his value. Although it’s hard to imagine him making any sort of impact the rest of the way, the reasoning behind his signing makes sense as the team needs more size at the center position.
The former Duke Blue Devil should see spot minutes in blowout situations, but expectations should be kept low for his Los Angeles tenure.
Spencer Dinwiddie realizing every team gives Lakers their best shot
Even though the Lakers are sitting toward the bottom of the Western Conference standings, every game feels like a dogfight. Spencer Dinwiddie, who has been with the team for less than a month, admitted he’s realizing that every team is going to give the purple and gold their best shot.
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