Lakers News: As LA Stands Pat With Extra Roster Space, Other Teams Sign New Pieces

Why are the Lakers not trying out vets for their last roster spot?

Your Los Angeles Lakers have a frontcourt health problem.

That issue was on full display yesterday, when the 34-36 Lakers fell to the 17-52 Houston Rockets, the West's 15th seed, 114-110. LA was without star forward LeBron James or star center Anthony Davis, and its front line depth was further limited on the bench, as 3-and-D center Mo Bamba is essentially out for the rest of the 2022-23 NBA regular season with a high left foot sprain.

Davis is now considered probable to return for Friday's home game against the Dallas Mavericks. But James and Bamba could both be done for the year.

Obviously, if James is unable to suit up for play-in tournament games or a playoff round, LA's season will effectively be over. But assuming that that is not the case, and that he mounts some kind of comeback eventually, it would behoove LA to find a long-term substitute for Bamba.

Small-ball-inclined Los Angeles head coach Darvin Ham has been playing 6'9" power forward Wenyen Gabriel at center all season, to mixed results. Gabriel is a non-threat offensively, though a decent defender for certain (i.e. undersized and in limited minutes) matchups. He's not a long-term fix as the team's de facto backup five, especially if Davis is only going to be sporadically available during the team's home stretch.

Meanwhile, other playoff-caliber clubs are using the end of the regular season to flesh out the fringes of their rotations with intriguing bigs. The Milwaukee Bucks first inked seven-footer Meyers Leonard to a series of 10-day contracts before bringing him aboard for the rest of the season yesterday. The Brooklyn Nets brought in first Nerlens Noel, and now Moses Brown, on 10-day deals as they continue to look for a good backup behind starter Nicolas Claxton.

Noel, now a free agent, would be a good fit for LA as a solid rim defender with more size than Gabriel. DeMarcus Cousins and Dwight Howard are also still available, though neither has played a second of NBA basketball this season, so one wonders how much they actually have left in the tank.

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