Los Angeles Lakers: Jahlil Okafor is still a risk worth taking

Despite all of the new signing this offseason, the Los Angeles Lakers could still use one more center for depth. Jahlil Okafor is a great risk worth taking.

The Los Angeles Lakers have completely reinvented the team this past offseason and now look like one of the best teams in the Western Conference.

Led by LeBron James, the Lakers have assembled a core of veterans on one-year contracts to compliment the very talented young core. Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma and Josh Hart are all full of potential.

Rajon Rondo, Michael Beasley, JaVale McGee and Lance Stephenson are talented veterans that will have a decent role on this team. At the very least, they will be entertaining to watch.

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However, with all of these additions, the Lakers are still short-manned at center. The team’s only two traditional centers are McGee and Ivica Zubac. LeBron James could see time at “center” to close games and rookie Moritz Wagner could also see time.

However, McGee is not that productive and Zubac is yet to really prove anything in the league. Thus, the Los Angeles Lakers should look to take a risk on one more center to potentially increase the talent at the position.

If Los Angeles is willing to take that risk, I would bring in Jahlil Okafor on a minimum contract.

Okafor is young, promising, has size and is the perfect traditional center to a tee. Okafor is athletic enough to really thrive alongside LeBron James and is good enough on the glass to improve the team’s current rebounding outlook.

Okafor has proven in the past that he can be productive. While injuries have slowed him down, Okafor has also never played on a contending team where he can really shine.

Okafor was the center for the Philadelphia 76ers before the fruits of the process’ labor really started to show. Then, he was dealt to the Brooklyn Nets, who have been irrelevant for 15 years.

Now, Okafor finds himself in free agent purgatory with no real place to go. The Los Angeles Lakers should take advantage of that, sign him to a minimum deal and give him playing time during the preseason.

If he shines, Okafor can work his way and take minutes from Zubac and McGee. If he does not shine, he can serve as a depth piece or be released.

Either way, there is no real downside of the Lakers taking a shot on Okafor and giving him minutes in the preseason. He is definitely talented, perhaps that could finally light a fire under him and bring the best out of him.

And if Okafor plays up to the massive potential that followed him out of college, the Los Angeles Lakers would have someone very special on their hands. Sounds like a great signing to me.