The Los Angeles Lakers are the most unstable presence of any NBA team this season, and they are the team that has reversed the most defeats after leading the league by ten points. Part of the reason for all this is due to serious injuries, but more fundamentally to the misguided thinking of the team in the offseason. After completing Westbrook's introduction this summer, the Lakers decided to push James to the fourth position, with Anthony Davis as the team's fifth guard. But in such a situation, they signed howard and Jordan Jr. two pure interior players, which made the Lakers' flank manpower slightly thin. Especially after Davis was injured, the Lakers had to push James to the inside line, further exacerbating the situation.
In the past nearly half a month, James has played an impressive MVP-level performance in the team's fifth position, which has also made the Lakers management determined to reshuffle the lineup. According to the report of TBC, a well-known basketball media in the United States, the Lakers will cut Jordan Jr. in the near future, freeing up the lineup space to sign flanker Stanley Johnson. Jordan Jr., who signed to the Lakers on a base salary this season, did not come up with a convincing performance, averaging 4.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game is almost his career low. Although the physical function of the other interior Howard has declined significantly, Jordan Jr.'s lazy defensive attitude has put him at a disadvantage in the battle for two and one. After cutting Jordan Jr., the Lakers were able to keep Stanley, who is now signing as a difficult exception, in the team.
Under the NBA's latest rules, teams can sign hardship exception contracts with the same player up to two times. After the expiration of the second contract, if the team still wants to retain the player, it must be given a formal contract at least until the end of the season. The Lakers' official contract player numbers are currently full, so they will have to cut one person to complete Stanley's signing. After Joining the Lakers, Stanley used his excellent physical fitness and defensive ability to quickly gain a foothold. In the game against the Rockets, Stanley Johnson, who had been away from the league for a full year, entered the Lakers' starting lineup. With James in more five positions, the presence of Stanley Johnson, who has great defensive ability, can give the coaching staff more freedom to deploy the wing rotation.
Because it is also possible to reach a ten-day contract with Stanley Johnson, the Lakers are not expected to immediately lay off Jordan Jr. They will keep Jordan Jr. until Ariza returns from the ban, so that the Lakers have Anthony, James, Stanley and Ariza temple names that can be used as wing players in the small lineup, enough to let them get through the difficult period of Anthony Davis's injury. Rivers and Bazemore have returned from the ban, and whether the Lakers can make a good start in 22 years is worth the expectations of fans. Do fans and friends think Stanley Johnson stayed in the team to help a lot? Should Jordan Jr. be cut? Welcome to discuss and communicate in the comments section!