Los Angeles Lakers Player Spotlight: Avery Bradley

Avery Bradley was viewed as a solid pick-up by the Los Angeles Lakers over the summer and has lived up to that moniker thus far.

With the Los Angeles Lakers currently out of commission, we are putting each player in the spotlight to showcase who they are and what they contribute to the team.

The second player on the Lakers roster that we will be looking at in the player spotlight series is none other than Avery Bradley.

Biography

Avery Brandley spent a single season with the Texas Longhorns where he averaged 11.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.9 steals. This state was enough to earn him a spot on the Big 12 All-Freshman team.

Bradley was drafted in 2010 by the Boston Celtics at the tail end of their championship runs with Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett. As a result of this, once Pierce and Garnett were traded and Rondo and Allen left in free agency, Bradley got a larger opportunity with the Celtics.

His peak with the team came in the 2016-17 season, where he averaged a career-high 16.3 points. Also, this season Bradley helped the Celtics get the first seed in the Eastern Conference. After this season, he was traded to the Pistons in a package for Marcus Morris.

Later on, Detroit would trade him in a package to acquire Blake Griffin. After a season with the Clippers, he was traded to the Grizzlies for JaMychal Green and Garrett Temple.

He was then waived from the Grizzles where he would eventually find his way back to Los Angeles. Just this time with the Lakers rather than the Clippers.

Strengths and Weaknesses

Avery Bradley is a player who personifies what it means to be a thee and D player in the NBA. He is a career 36% three-point shooter. Also, as a result of both LeBron James and Anthony Davis being able to find the open man when they are being double-teamed inside the pain, Bradley’s quality of three-point attempts may be the best of his entire NBA career.

On the defensive side of the ball, he is one of the peskiest defenders in the league. Bradley is notorious for hounding ball handlers which results in the great steal numbers he has had throughout his career.

The only major weakness he has is that he is a bit undersized. As a result of this, he can sometimes struggle to finish at the rim and on defense, he is at times left helpless if he is switched onto a center.

What He Brings To The Los Angeles Lakers

Avery is the perfect role player for the Lakers and the perfect player to put along LeBron James. He is a player that can hit an open three and can also guard the opposing team’s best ball handler if necessary.

On top of this, Bradley is someone that is a respected veteran in the league and has years of playoff experience. This is something that the Lakers will lean on once the playoffs finally begin.

Lastly, he is someone who is known to come up clutch when needed. A moment that illustrates this is back when he was with the Celtics Bradley hit a cold-blooded three to win against an elite LeBron James led Cleveland Cavaliers team.