As hard as it is to accept it, LeBron James isn’t getting any younger, and the Los Angeles Lakersmight need to rely on Anthony Davis and their supporting cast now more than ever.
GM Rob Pelinka is well aware of that, and he’s done a rather solid job over the past nine months or so, revamping their roster after making a bit of a mess before the start of the 2022/23 season.
With that in mind, he knows they need to be deeper if they want to pursue an NBA championship, which is why they’re reportedly looking to shake things up by signing a stretch five.
NBA Rumors: Lakers Could Sign Christian Wood
“I think dimensional-izing the skills at that position would be important,” Pelinka said. “So we don’t want to sign someone who replicates the skills that Jaxson Hayes has. So, if we can diversify the big position and have different looks, that would be good.”
Notably, that pretty much confirms the reports of their alleged interest in signing Christian Wood, who hasn’t gauged much interest as a free market, at least for a big salary:
“The last thing I heard was that there was some Lakers minimum interest. I have not heard about the minimum. I’d be surprised. I’m a big Christian Wood fan,” reported Jake Fischer. “I think he’s a bit misunderstood. But I also don’t think there is an NBA front office out there that wants to pay more than the minimum right now. I would be surprised; I really would.”
Wood isn’t an All-Star by any means, but he’s more than capable of stretching the floor as a shooting big man, not to mention he’s durable enough to sub in for Anthony Davis if — when — he misses time.