By James Brown
The Lakers just started to make some moves during the offseason as they traded for a defensive player in Patrick Beverley. The team sent two young players in Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson to the Utah Jazz in exchange for the all-NBA defensive player. Now, NBA insider decided to give the Lakers a grade after the movement.
The Lakers definitely needed to make some moves before the start of the season. Adding a player like Beverley makes sense as they were a bottom ten team in defensive efficiency. By contrast, they were a top 3 defense when they won the championship in 2020.
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ESPN's NBA insider Kevin Pelton decided to grade the Lakers with an A after the trade. “At the other end of the court, Beverley knows his limitations and plays within them. He's a low-usage scorer who can knock down open jumpers. While Beverley made just 34% of his 3s last season, he's a 38% career 3-point shooter who can also offer some supplemental ball handling to take that pressure off of LeBron.”
Pelton also explained that, unlike Russell Westbrook, Beverley is a role player that can help both Anthony Davis and Lebron James, without wanting the attention. "All told, Beverley is precisely the kind of role player you want surrounding Davis and James, and at a reasonable price," concluded Pleton.
It's naive to believe that Beverley's arrival will solve every Lakers problem. But the truth is that they are still going to need a player or two that helps on offense. Meanwhile, Beverley was brought to upgrade the defensive side of the ball and maybe shoot some threes now or then.
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