Impact of Rescinded Mark Williams Trade on Lakers Season

The Lakers are now stuck when it comes to the center position.

Dec 30, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams (5) reacts to a foul call during the second half against the Chicago Bulls at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images / Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers thought they had their starting center of the future after trading for 23-year-old center, Mark Williams.

The trade was originally supposed to see them send Dalton Knecht and Cam Reddish to the Hornets in exchange for the center. Now, that is not happening.

On Saturday night, Los Angeles rescinded the trade because of a failed physical with Williams. They allegedly failed him not because of the back issues that have cost him games this year but for something else.

We still don't know the exact reason for the failed physical, and we may never know as the Lakers aren't obligated to share, but Williams will not be a Laker.

They will keep having Jaxson Hayes as their starting center.

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Los Angeles is hoping that the addition of Luka Doncic will help make Hayes a better fit. He is a good rim-runner, which is part of the reason why the Lakers also wanted Williams.

The issue with Hayes is that he is a poor defender. He doesn't protect the rim in the same manner that a lot of other centers around the league are capable of doing, although his defensive metrics say another thing. Still, in the long run, that type of play may not be sustainable.

Doncic's addition makes the overall defense worse but will make the offense immensely better. The new hope is that the Lakers will be able to outscore teams instead of grinding them down with defense.

Not having Williams will certainly hurt their overall ceiling this season. If they would have been able to add him, this team would have had a shot to win the title.

Now, their defense might not be good enough to reach the Finals. They also have to prove that they can stay healthy, something that Williams obviously struggled with.

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Los Angeles does not have good depth at the center position now. Hayes is the only one who they can truly count on, even with the recent signing of Alex Len.

Len is not going to truly change what they can do defensively because he's also a poor defensive player at the center position.

It's going to be up to Doncic, LeBron James. and Austin Reaves to lead this team offensively and score a ton of points in order to win games for the rest of the season. They'll have to address this position in the offseason.

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