Los Angeles Lakers: Buyout options better than Carmelo Anthony
By Jason Reed
2. Markieff Morris, PF
Markieff Morris is the most likely buyout option to go to the Los Angeles Lakers not named Carmelo Anthony. In fact, if I had to put a number on it, I would probably say there is just as equal of a chance of the Lakers either going after Morris or Anthony.
Morris would undoubtedly be the better option for the Los Angeles Lakers to pursue. He is starting-caliber and is deserving of being a starter on a playoff team, although he would likely be on the bench for the Lakers.
The forward is averaging 11.5 points and 5.1 rebounds in 26 minutes per game this season. However, this is a down year for Morris, who is shooting as some of the worst rates of his career and has a defensive rating of 113, which is worse than any other year of his career.
That has come on the Washington Wizards though and he would find a spark playing on a playoff team with a particular role. It adds forward depth behind LeBron James and Kyle Kuzma and gives the Lakers a gritty player that can come up in big moments off the bench in big games.
While his stats this year would say otherwise, Morris can play good defense, which already puts him a step ahead of Anthony. I would rather have strictly a defender on the bench than strictly a shaky scorer.