The Lakers are shaking things up at point guard.Russell Westbrook and Kyrie Irving rumors appear to be on hold, but Los Angeles have decided to beef up their backcourt, with Tarren Horton Tucker and Stanley Acquired veteran guard Patrick Beverly from the Jazz in exchange for Johnson. Beverly is on his third team this offseason after being traded to Utah in a deal for Rudy Gobert. THT signed a three-year contract last summer that included a player option for next season. Johnson, 26, is a lottery pick who first joined the Lakers on his 10-day deal last December. Evaluate the movement of both sides.
Lakers: C-
Beverly is a solid player alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis. His defensive tenacity will be welcomed by the team he lacked last season, and he’ll shoot enough to make the playoffs superstars in open threes. Sometimes, however, the more headliners he can perform with, the more valuable he becomes. With LeBron doing most of the ball handling, Beverly can slip into his ideal role. He means he’s only responsible for spacing out the opposite floor while defensively chasing the backcourt stars. After the fiasco that was the Lakers’ defense in 2022, this acquisition immediately improves the team.
However, the ratings for this deal take a hit because of what precedes it. The Lakers had a better version of Alex Caruso’s Pat Bev. They chose to walk Caruso in favor of THT, who failed to live up to the potential the front office saw in him, and LA could have both Caruso and Beverly now. Instead, he has only the latter as he enters his 34-year-old season. On the one hand, the Lakers deserve credit for finding an influential veteran who isn’t stubborn and can cut losses and help the team in the playoffs. (Also, given Westbrook’s frosty relationship with Beverly, it raises even more questions about Westbrook’s future with the team.)
Patrick Beverly joins Russell Westbrook in Los Angeles.
Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports
Jazz: C+
Utah is basically ready for anyone to pick up flyers right now as it goes into reconstruction. Horton Tucker was miscast on a Lakers team with championship hopes and wasn’t a great tertiary ballhandler for James and Westbrook. , THT will have the opportunity to grow more organically with his new team. If the Jazz end up trading Donovan for his Mitchell, Horton has a good chance of his Tucker soaking up possessions on the perimeter and finding a foothold in the NBA rotation.
Johnson did well in LA last season after first joining the team as a COVID-19 substitute. It would surprise me if he ended the season with the Jazz instead of somehow eventually catching up to his competitors. If not, Utah can at least use him and throw it to the perimeter scorer.
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