The Los Angeles Lakers capped off an active free agency period with the addition of 10-year forward Michael Beasley, who fills the team’s 15th and final roster spot.
Beasley, coming off a resurgent season with the New York Knicks, is the latest veteran to sign a one-year contract with the Lakers this summer.
He joins fellow newcomers JaVale McGee, Rajon Rondo and Lance Stephenson to receive short-term commitments, as Los Angeles looks to maintain salary cap space and flexibility heading into 2019 free agency.
Beasley touched base on his expectations with the Lakers next season, and revealed he is mainly focused on winning games over receiving a set amount of guaranteed playing time, via Joey Ramirez of Lakers.com:
“I’m not really here to beat anybody for minutes or play anymore than this guy,” Beasley said. “I’m here to help play a team game and do as much winning as I can.”
Beasley averaged 13.2 points and 5.6 rebounds in 22.3 minutes with the Knicks last season, shooting 50.7 percent from the field and 39.5 percent from behind the arc.
The 29-year-old put up those numbers in only 30 starts, so he is more than capable of providing instant offense off the Lakers bench when called upon. Moreover, his positional flexibility gives head coach Luke Walton plenty of options when constructing lineups.
Beasley has experience at both forward positions, and he could hypothetically see time at center if or when the Lakers deploy their small ball unit.
Along with going over his role with the Lakers next season, Beasley opined that the team’s large personalities in the locker room shouldn’t be viewed as a detriment to their potential success.
Beasley praised McGee, Rondo, Stephenson as solid basketball minds who could make a bigger impact on the court than most anticipate.
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