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The Los Angeles Lakers have signed forward V.J. Beachem.
Beachem appeared in 36 games (all starts) for Notre Dame last season, averaging 14.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 34.2 minutes as a senior. Overall, the 6-foot-8 forward notched 9.2 points and 2.7 rebounds through 132 career games with the Fighting Irish.
Beachem most recently competed in four games for the Minnesota Timberwolves at the 2017 Las Vegas NBA Summer League.
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The Los Angeles Lakers signed center Stephen Zimmerman today.
Zimmerman spent the 2016-17 season with the Orlando Magic and played in 19 games, averaging 1.2 points and 1.8 rebounds in 5.7 minutes per game. Selected by Orlando in the second round (41st overall) of the 2016 NBA Draft, the 7-foot center spent much of the season with the Erie BayHawks of the NBA G League, where he tallied 13.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.2 steals in 21 games (all starts).
A native of Las Vegas, Zimmerman played one season at UNLV, notching 10.5 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks in 26 games (24 starts).
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The Los Angeles Lakers have signed guard Vander Blue.
Blue most recently competed for the South Bay Lakers of the NBA G League, where he averaged 24.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.6 steals last season before being named 2017 NBA G League Most Valuable Player. He has averaged 23.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists through four seasons in the G League and stands as South Bay’s all-time leader in points, field goals made and free throws made.
The 6-foot-5 guard was a member of the Lakers’ entry in the 2017 Las Vegas Summer League, where he contributed 15.0 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists as Los Angeles won their first summer league championship.
Undrafted in the 2013 NBA Draft, Blue averaged 9.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steal per game in three seasons at Marquette before winning All-AAC Second Team honors in 2013.
The Los Angeles Lakers have signed center Thomas Bryant, it was announced today by General Manager Rob Pelinka.
Bryant, the 42nd overall selection in the 2017 NBA Draft, acquired via trade with the Utah Jazz on draft night, averaged 12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 assists in 34 games (all starts) for Indiana University last season.
In eight games played for the Lakers in the 2017 Las Vegas Summer League, Bryant notched 5.1 points (.667 FG%) and 3.3 rebounds in 13.4 minutes.
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The Lakers have signed guard Tyler Ennis, General Manager Rob Pelinka announced today.
Ennis appeared in 22 games (two starts) for the Lakers last season, averaging 7.7 points, 2.4 assists and 1.2 rebounds in 17.8 minutes. In seven games played in April (two starts), Ennis scored in double-figures four times, tallying 11.3 points, 3.6 assists and 1.3 rebounds in 27.7 minutes.
Formerly the 18th overall selection in the 2014 NBA Draft, Ennis owns career averages of 4.2 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 132 games with the Suns, Bucks, Rockets and Lakers.
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The Los Angeles Lakers have signed guard Alex Caruso to a two-way contract, it was announced today by General Manager Rob Pelinka.
Caruso spent the 2016-17 season with the Oklahoma City Blue of the NBA G League, notching 11.9 points, 5.2 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 2.2 steals in 50 games (46 starts). The College Station, TX, native played four seasons at Texas A&M (2012-16), earning All-SEC Second Team honors and was an SEC All-Defensive Team selection in 2015-16.
Per NBA rules, teams are permitted to have up to two players under two-way contracts on their roster at any given time, in addition to their 15-man regular season roster. As a two-way player, Caruso can spend up to 45 days with the Los Angeles Lakers, not including any time prior to the start of the South Bay Lakers’ training camp or after the conclusion of their G League season.
The 2017-18 season marks the first year NBA two-way contracts will be implemented, in which two-way players are paid a corresponding daily amount based on the number of days they play in each league. Only players with four or fewer years of NBA experience are eligible to sign two-way contracts, which can be a maximum of two seasons in length.
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The Los Angeles Lakers have signed guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, it was announced today by General Manager Rob Pelinka.
Per multiple reports, Caldwell-Pope’s contract is a short one: a one-year, $18 million contract. That’s a nice payday for one season, but it also means he’ll have to have an excellent season in the hope of landing a multi-year monster deal next year.
Caldwell-Pope joins Los Angeles following four seasons with the Detroit Pistons, where he averaged 11.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 314 contests (274 starts). Last season, the 24-year-old averaged 13.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 steals in 76 games (75 starts) with the Pistons.
Selected by Detroit with the eighth overall selection in the 2013 NBA Draft, Caldwell-Pope averaged 15.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 64 career games (60 starts) at Georgia before winning SEC Player of the Year honors in 2013.
The Lakers will hold an introductory press conference with Caldwell-Pope, General Manager Rob Pelinka and President of Basketball Operations Earvin “Magic” Johnson at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, July 18, at the Toyota Sports Center.
No need to panic. No need for alarm. There is no reason to go too wild in reaction to a rookie’s first game in Las Vegas at Summer League. Anyway, here’s ESPN.com reporting on the No. 2 pick in the 2017 Draft, Lakers rookie guard Lonzo Ball:
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The Clippers defeated the Lakers 96-93. Ball scored five points on 2-for-15 shooting, dished out five assists and grabbed four rebounds…
The Lonzo Ball era began with a bang as it took less than 30 seconds for the second overall pick to deliver a highlight play with his first assist coming on an alley-oop pass to Brandon Ingram.
Despite the fact that Lonzo struggled with his shot — going just 1-for-11 from 3-point range — LaVar said the Rookie of the Year contest won’t be much of a contest.
“Rookie of the Year man, sewn up,” LaVar said.
The Los Angeles Lakers have signed guard Lonzo Ball, forward Kyle Kuzma and guard Josh Hart to their NBA rookie contracts, it was announced today by General Manager Rob Pelinka.
Drafted with the second overall selection of the 2017 NBA Draft, Ball averaged 14.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and an NCAA-best 7.6 assists per game in his lone season at UCLA. A consensus First-Team All-American, Pac-12 Co-Player of the Year and Pac-12 Newcomer of the Year, Ball finished the season first among the Pac-12 in assists (7.6), third in steals (1.8) and fifth in field goal percentage (.551). In 2016-17, he became the first player in the conference to average at least 14 points, six rebounds and seven assists per game since Jason Kidd in 1992-93.
Kuzma, the 27th selection in this year’s draft, acquired via trade with the Brooklyn Nets on draft night, averaged 16.4 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists for Utah last season. The former All-Pac-12 First Team and Pac-12 All-Defensive Team selection appeared in 96 career games (64 starts) for the Utes, tallying 10.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per contest.
Originally selected by the Jazz with this year’s No. 30 draft pick, Hart averaged 18.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists for Villanova in 2016-17. A consensus First Team All-American and the reigning Big East Player of the Year, the 22-year-old finished the season ranked first in the Big East in points (18.7), fourth in field goal percentage (.510) and fourth in rebounds (6.4).
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The Los Angeles Lakers have requested waivers on forward/center Tarik Black, it was announced today by General Manager Rob Pelinka.
Black was acquired via waiver claim on December 28, 2014 and has averaged 5.5 points (.543 FG%) and 5.1 rebounds in 144 career games (43 starts) with the Lakers.