Lakers Rumors: Brandon Jennings could revitalize career in LA

After George Hill signed with the Sacramento Kings, the Lakers need to reevaluate their options. According to the latest Lakers Rumors, Brandon Jennings is a fit.

Here at LA Sports Hub, we have constantly mentioned how weak and thin the Los Angeles Lakers are at guard. With the departure of both Nick Young and D’Angelo Russell, the Lakers are missing one more piece to play behind Lonzo Ball. With the latest Lakers rumors in mind, a new fit in LA may be emerging.

Brandon Jennings is an eight-year veteran, playing for five different NBA ball clubs. Early in his career, Jennings was touted as one of the best young guards in the league. Although he has fallen off in recent years, Jennings still has the potential to be great again.

After George Hill signed with the Sacramento Kings the Lakers are going to need to look at what is on the free agent market. Despite being interested in Rajon Rondo, the real fit lies in Jennings.

In case you missed it, Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka have been fairly busy with this Lakers team. First, Russell was traded to the Brooklyn Nets after only two seasons with the Lakers after earning the second overall selection. In return, the Lakers acquired Brook Lopez and the 27th overall pick, also getting rid of Timofey Mozgov’s contract in the process.

Then, the Lakers did the obvious and selected Ball with the second overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. Ball is slated to be the starting point guard, with Jordan Clarkson moving back to shooting guard. Behind Clarkson, sleeper candidate Josh Hart will eat the bulk of the bench minutes.

Los Angeles was very smart to bring in a player like Ball. What the Lakers need is a court general, somebody that can make the players around him better with his passing and playmaking ability. Ball fits that bill perfectly, and although he may be a tad green at first, he will undoubtedly turn into one of the best distributors in the NBA.

However, this has left the Lakers with no real scoring option at point. Lonzo may average around 12 a game in his rookie year, but the Lakers need more scoring than that. Tyler Ennis won’t provide that, even if he resigns, making Hart the only viable scorer off the bench.

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Right now, the starting five will likely be able to hold their own in the scoring department. Lopez can score 20, Julius Randle can average a double-double, and in the right system, Brandon Ingram can average at least fifteen. With a combined 25-30 points out of Ball and Clarkson, the Lakers are getting great numbers from their first unit.

But any good NBA team needs a good bench, and if the Lakers want to be taken seriously they need a better bench. Rajon Rondo obviously is not the right fit, as he would not provide the scoring that the Lakers need in the second unit.

Jennings has shown the ability to score the basketball. Although his scoring metrics have taken a huge hit in recent years, he has averaged as much as 19.1 points per game in a season. In Detroit, Orlando, and New York Jennings was in the wrong systems to succeed. In Washington, he had very little playing time behind John Wall.

In this young Lakers team, in Luke Walton’s system, Jennings could emerge a leader. Although the days of 20 points per game may be behind him, he can easily average 10-15 points per game.

That is huge for the Lakers, especially with Nick Young’s 13.2 points per game out the door. If the latest Lakers rumors around George Hill come to fruition, Laker fans should be very happy.