Los Angeles Lakers: Grades for every player so far this season
By Keith Rivas
Larry Nance! Look at Larry Nance!
Larry Nance Jr., C+
No, don’t look at him because of the fact that he dunked so hard on Brook Lopez that it took the broadcasters into the land of disbelief last season in Brooklyn. Rather, look at the fact that he hasn’t played like a starter, yet got his starting spot right back when he returned from injury.
Kyle Kuzma out-played his abilities in that short time that Nance Jr. was away, however the Lakers make the surprising move to delegate Kuzma back to the bench and inserted Nance Jr. back to the starting five.
Outside of his seven assists on average, Nance Jr. is giving Los Angeles less than ten points per game and hasn’t earned the right to be a starter at this point even though it hasn’t changed on the depth chart or the rotations.
Josh Hart, C
Playing stellar at Villanova in college, the NBA has been a different story for Josh Hart in Los Angeles. Perhaps the Lakers will be able to explore trade options with him as part of a package in the near future, but he hasn’t really been enough of a factor in any games to have a fair rating.
I give him a C because there is still time to see what he’s got in the tank and if he’ll actually be one of the answers for the Lakers in the long-term. The one biggest way to know that if you’re Hart is to fill the shoes of a guy like Jordan Clarkson should a trade go down before the deadline.
However, that’s still to be determined.
As of now, he’s only averaging around three points and two rebounds — but we never should’ve expected much from him to begin with. At least for his rookie season.
Corey Brewer, C-
If the Lakers could pick up a veteran and just have him on the team without really making that much of an impact, it’d probably be Corey Brewer. He’s 31, seeing less than 12 minutes of action per game, and averaging 2.6 points in those minutes.
Should the Lakers not find the leadership that they need from Lonzo Ball or someone else like Kuzma or Clarkson, you would’ve thought that perhaps they’d get it from someone who’s been in the league for a while.
However, that’s not the case with Corey Brewer.