NBA: 2020-21 Los Angeles Lakers roster
The Los Angeles Lakers are coming off of their first championship in over 10 years and their 17th championship as a franchise, they are looking to repeat as champions with an even stronger roster in 2020-21. Of course, everyone knows their two stars will be major factors in their season but who are the other Lakers? Here we hope to take care of any questions you may have and for the sake of organization, we are going through the roster in alphabetical order.
The Lakers’ first preseason game is Dec. 11 and their first game of the regular season is on Dec. 22 against the Los Angeles Clippers, where members of last season’s team will receive their 2020 championship rings.
Without further preamble, here’s a look at the Lakers for this compressed 72-game schedule.
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Age: 23 Size: 6-foot-10, 200 lbs. Experience: 2 years The younger brother of the reigning two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kostas Antetokounmpo agreed to re-join the Lakers for his second season on a two-way contract. Antetokounmpo was on a two-way contract with the Lakers last season and got most of his live game action in the G League with the South Bay Lakers. Antetokounmpo averaged 14 points, 25 minutes, and 7.8 rebounds while shooting 62.3% from the field last season for South Bay.
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Age: 27 Size: 6-5, 204 lbs. Experience: 7 years Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was written off as a punchline for the first couple years of his Lakers career but KCP flipped the script in the 2019-20 season with the Lakers. Particularly during the playoffs in the bubble, KCP stepped up in a major way for the Lakers. Whenever the Lakers needed a big shot outside of Anthony Davis or LeBron James, it was almost always KCP who delivered. His defense was also key to the Lakers' success as the best defense in the league last season. Caldwell-Pope shot 37.8% from the 3-point line on 119 attempts. He was rewarded during this offseason with a 3-year contract worth nearly $40 million.
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Age: 26 Size: 6-5, 186 lbs. Experience: 3 years Dismissed as nothing more than a mascot and a meme by non-Lakers fans jealous of his media coverage, Caruso got his first start of the playoffs in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, helping the Lakers clinch the NBA championship. After showing signs of being a great partner next to LeBron James due to his defensive flexibility and ability to play away from the ball, the Lakers outscored opponents by 20.8 points per 100 possessions in regular season games played before the shutdown with Caruso and James on the floor together. In 21 postseason games, the Lakers outscored opponents by 13.8 points per 100 possessions with the duo of Caruso and James sharing the floor. Caruso is set to make $2.75 million this season and can be an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2021.
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Age: 27 Size: 6-1, 180 lbs. Experience: 4 years After briefly being waived, one of the key chemists of the Lakers extraordinary team chemistry, Quinn Cook, is back. Now a two-time NBA Champion, Cook is still a career 40% 3-point shooter even though he played sparingly for the Lakers last season. Although the Lakers have added some more guard depth by bringing in Dennis Schröder, having someone who can come off the bench and knock down a 3-pointer when needed will likely be used at some point during the compressed 72-game season. Cook is also the team's reigning Madden tournament champion. Cook is set to make $1.6 million this season.
Anthony Davis
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Age: 27 Size: 6-10, 253 lbs. Experience: 8 years Anthony Davis wasted no time etching himself in Lakers lore. In only his first season with the Lakers, he was the leading scorer in both the regular season and the playoffs, helping the Lakers win their 17th championship. Davis stretched his game to new heights in the postseason, shooting over 55% from beyond 16 feet in the postseason while also being a monster out of the post, shooting 53.7% between three and 10 feet. While he's always been a finisher at the rim, perhaps no play exemplified his growth as a shooter like his buzzer-beater to beat the Denver Nuggets in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals. After helping win a championship, Davis committed to the Lakers long-term in free agency, agreeing to a five-year deal with a player option for the 5th season.
Jared Dudley
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Age: 35 Size: 6-6, 237 lbs. Experience: 13 years Jared Dudley, referred to by LeBron James as "Dudz," has stayed in the league because of his basketball IQ and ability to speak up in a locker room. Dudley re-signed with the Lakers at the veteran minimum for $2.5 million and was lauded by the Lakers for his basketball mind, both on the bench and in film rooms, during the postseason. Also, he can still be a competent role player when asked. He's still a good shooter, moves the ball well, and isn't afraid to get physical with players bigger than him. His days as a regular rotation player are clearly behind him, but he still brings value to the Lakers.
Marc Gasol
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Age: 35 Size: 6-11, 255 lbs. Experience: 12 years Gasol's days of being the fulcrum of your offense and the anchor of your defense for 30+ minutes a night are behind him but he instantly upgraded the Lakers playmaking and outside shooting at the center position. The 2013 Defensive Player of the year, Gasol is a career 35.4% 3-point shooter and he also has a much deeper bag of post moves than any of the centers who played for the Lakers last year next to Anthony Davis. If teams elect to hide smaller players on Gasol, he can make them pay with a bucket. He also has the vision to make teams pay if they ever send a double team. Gasol signed a two-year deal with the Lakers worth just over $5 million.
Talen Horton-Tucker
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Age: 20 Size: 6-4, 234 lbs. Experience: 1 year Horton-Tucker spent most of the season with the South Bay Lakers and while he played sparingly in the playoffs, he did have a few moments in the second round against the guard-heavy Houston Rockets. His most memorable moment was a 9-point outing in the closeout Game 5. Horton-Tucker is due to make $1.6 million this season and as a second-round pick, could be an unrestricted free agent after the season.
Montrezl Harrell
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Age: 26 Size: 6-7, 240 lbs. Experience: 5 years The 2019-20 Sixth Man of the Year switched teams inside the Staples Center during free agency. It caught now-former teammate Patrick Beverley off guard and it was yet another sign of what many had speculated: that the Clippers' chemistry was much weaker than what the Lakers had. Now the Lakers have added one of the most efficient bench scorers in the league and a player who has proven he can feast against opposing second units. He didn't have a great postseason but he was dealing with personal tragedy before coming into the bubble that limited his ability to train. Harrell signed a 2-year, $19 million deal with the Lakers on the first night of free agency.
LeBron James
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Age: 35 Size: 6-9, 250 lbs. Experience: 17 years The King stays the King. After his first season in Los Angeles was beset by the longest injury absence of his career, James reminded everyone why he's still considered to be the best player in the world by many of his NBA peers. Running the point guard with few back-up options, James averaged over 10 assists per game for the first time in his 17-year NBA career, leading the league in assists for the first time in his career as well. He did so while averaging over 25 points per game and being the "middle linebacker" of the Lakers defense, which was 3rd in the league in defensive rating. James was dominant in the postseason, leading the Lakers to a 16-5 record in the postseason. In addition to his 4th championship ring, James also took home his 4th career NBA Finals MVP, joining Michael Jordan (6) as the only players in league history with at least four Finals MVP awards. After the season, James committed to the Lakers by signing a two-year extension worth $85 million, which will keep him in purple and gold until the summer of 2023. The summer of 2023 also happens to be when his eldest son Bronny James is expected to graduate from high school.
Kyle Kuzma
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Age: 25 Size: 6-8, 221 lbs. Experience: 3 years Kuzma's counting stats, like minutes, points and shots, were a casualty of the addition of Anthony Davis. But rather than complain about losing shots to a seven-time All-Star, Kuzma realized that he had an opportunity to play a role for a team with championship aspirations. He did just that, improving as a defender to the point the Lakers were comfortable putting him on the opposing team's best players. While he was far from a stopper, his commitment to defense and his 6-9 frame proved useful within the Lakers system. Kuzma is eligible for a contract extension and his reps want a "sizable" contract. If the Lakers and Kuzma don't agree to a deal before the season, Kuz will enter restricted free agency next summer.
Wesley Matthews
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Age: 34 Size: 6-4, 220 lbs. Experience: 11 years Nicknamed the "Iron Man" in the early part of his career for playing in 250 consecutive games, Matthews remains a reliable player and comes into camp as a potential starter at shooting guard after suffering a torn Achilles tendon in 2015. Matthews, a career 38% 3-point shooter, remains willing to take on the opposing team's best player. While he may not be as great at it as he was in his younger years when he was checking Kobe Bryant and James Harden in the playoffs, he provides a reasonable facsimile of what Danny Green brought the Lakers last season. Matthews, who signed a 1-year deal worth $3.6 million, also comes at a fraction of what Green cost the Lakers last season to do much of the same job.
Markieff Morris
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Age: 31 Size: 6-8, 245 lbs. Experience: 9 years Markieff Morris was pretty anonymous before the playoffs due to the fact he was signed to the Lakers just before the season shut down in March and he didn't do very much in the seeding games, because the Lakers themselves were pretty uninspired in the seeding games. All of that changed in the postseason as Morris became a reliable fixture in the rotation, becoming someone coach Frank Vogel could rely on no matter the match-up. Whether it was the Blazers going with two centers, the Rockets going with none, or the variety of lineups in the Western Conference and NBA Finals, Morris usually found his way onto the court. He shot 42% from the 3-point line and he also did a good job defensively to earn an invitation to return. Morris chose to sign a 1-year, $2.3 million deal to return to the Lakers despite receiving interest from the Clippers, where his brother Marcus plays.
Dennis Schröder
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Age: 27 Size: 6-1, 172 lbs. Experience: 7 years Schröder was acquired by the Lakers in a trade involving starting shooting guard Danny Green and the 28th pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, Jaden McDaniels. After being traded to the Thunder in 2018, Schröder was a reliable force off the bench with last season being his best in a Thunder uniform, averaging 18.9 points, four assists, and 3.6 rebounds while shooting a career-best 38.5% from he 3-point line on a career-high 5 attempts per game. Schröder also ran over 400 pick-and-roll possessions for the Thunder last season. While the Lakers got a major boost in the playoffs from Rajon Rondo, Schröder's youth and work rate in the regular season could help them be an even more dangerous team as they look to defend their title. Schröder is entering the final year of a 4-year, $62 million deal and is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Zavier Simpson
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Age: 23 Size: 6-0, 190 lbs. Experience: Rookie Simpson averaged 12.9 points, 7.9 assists and shot 47.6% from the field and 36% from the 3-point line as a senior guard for the Michigan Wolverines. Simpson agreed to a training camp deal after the draft according to Shams Charania, but it's not yet clear whether he will remain on the roster beyond training camp. It's also possible the Lakers use their last two-way contract on Simpson.
