In the weeks leading up to the draft it appeared to be a done deal that the Los Angeles Lakers would select Duke big man Jahlil Okafor to be their center of the future. Had they gone that route LA would find themselves in need of a guard to backup Jordan Clarkson and, perhaps more importantly, a small forward to mercifully replace Wesley Johnson in the starting lineup.
Mitch Kupchak opted to throw everyone (including a saddened Okafor) a curve ball by selecting passing prodigy D'Angelo Russell, figuring that he and Clarkson could be a deadly combination in the Lakers back court for the next decade. One of the fortuitous ripple effects of the Russell pick is that it allows Kobe Bryant to...
Monroe isn't a rim protector, but does have the advantage of a 25% max, so he would be cheaper than Aldridge, Gasol, Love, etc. He isn't the ideal fit, but if he agrees to sign for 4 years he will almost surely be an asset on a good contract.
Russell/
Clarkson/Young/J. Brown
Kobe/Young/A. Brown/Nance
Randle/Kelly/Nance
Black/Upshaw/Sacre
Currently, Nick is first one off the bench for any of our 3 starters due to being able to shuffle other two starters accordingly based on other teams matchup.
OR
Russell/Clarkson
Kobe/Clarkson/J. Brown
Young/A. Brown/Nance
Randle/Kelly/Nance
Black/Upshaw/Sacre
Projected cap space after players used above anyone?
