The Sixer Sense
Fansided

Lakers and Kings Dictate 2017 NBA Draft Of Philadelphia 76ers

By Bret Stuter

May 17, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown (right) poses with NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum after the 76ers receive the first pick in the 2016 NBA draft during the NBA draft lottery at New York Hilton Midtown. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
May 17, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown (right) poses with NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum after the 76ers receive the first pick in the 2016 NBA draft during the NBA draft lottery at New York Hilton Midtown. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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Apr 13, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Timofey Mozgov (20) dribbles against Detroit Pistons center Aron Baynes (12) in the first quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 13, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Timofey Mozgov (20) dribbles against Detroit Pistons center Aron Baynes (12) in the first quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /

Lakeside Free Agency

The Los Angeles Lakers made moves to retain some of their players with expiring contracts:  offered a new contract to guard Jordan Clarkson, qualifying offer to center/forward Tarik Black, and a qualifying offer to guard Marcelo Huertas.  That places forward Brandon Bass, center Roy Hibbert, foward Ryan Kelly, forward Robert Sacre, and forward Metta World Peace as free agents.

At the opening bell, the Los Angeles Lakers committed to center Timofey Mozgov, and was followed up with a forward Luol Deng.  They also circled back and committed to one of their own, Jordan Clarkson.

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Mozgov played with a nagging knee injury in the 2015-2016 season, and the Lakers have gambled that everything has healed. Mozgov will help the Lakers post defense, but he doesn’t bring much to the team in terms of offense.  From the team where he started 46 games, he’ll likely be called upon to start 82 games for the Lakers, at a load of double the average of 17.4 minutes played in the 2015-2016 season.  Will his 30 year old body withstand the constant pounding of his physical style game?  The Lakers believe it will.

Small forward Luol Deng comes to the Lakers from the Miami Heat, and he is as close to a placeholder at small forward for Kobe Bryant as the team could sign.  He is a solid 12 year NBA veteran who can contribute both offensively and defensively for the team.  The biggest concern with Deng is that his average scoring of the past three years have fallen below his average and have been in decline, the most recent being 12.3 points per game.  With the team losing Kobe Bryant’s 17.6 points per game, the team will need to make up the difference elsewhere.

The Lakers finished the 2015-2016 NBA season with the worst scoring offense in the NBA, and with the exception of Ingram, have done little to address that.  Defensively, I think Mozgov could help the team, but the Lakers sat at 27th in a 30 team league defensively.

You’ll see some claims that the Lakers hope to build a playoff team this year.  Don’t believe it.  They will finish near the bottom of the NBA once more.

Next: Kingside Draft