With recent reports that the Los Angeles Lakers might pursue Marcus Morris, here are three reasons why he would be a good fit.
Now that the disappointing 2018-19 season is behind the Los Angeles Lakers, the franchise will be looking forward to what could be a very good offseason. The Lakers currently have the fourth pick in the NBA Draft and the cap space needed to sign a max level player.
With LeBron James and a strong young core of talent, adding a Top 5 pick and potential another All-Star could make Los Angeles a very dangerous team next season. One of the reasons for the failures of the Lakers this offseason was the players that they surrounded LeBron James with.
James has had a lot of success in his career when he has been surrounded by shooters. However, the Lakers didn’t add any shooters alongside James, and the team was clearly lacking in that area.
According to Shams Charania, the Lakers are one of the teams that might be pursuing Marcus Morris. You can read what Shams said here with a paid subscription to The Athletic.
While Morris isn’t the max level player that the Lakers will be prioritizing, he checks a lot of boxes for Los Angeles. As a player that can shoot and play multiple positions, Morris will likely be a sought-after free agent.
This is a very important offseason for the Lakers after missing the playoffs for the sixth straight season. With the ability to improve this roster, here are three reasons why Marcus Morris would be a good fit with the Lakers.
– Provides versatility
One of the very appealing things about Marcus Morris is his ability to play multiple positions. In the NBA, being able to play two positions has almost become essential now, and Morris is capable of playing at both the small or power forward positions.
Being able to play these two positions is very important on the defensive end of the court. Being able to switch without creating glaring mismatches is critical for team defense, and for success on that end of the court.
On the offensive end, Morris has all the tools to be able to succeed at both positions. Morris is a very capable scorer in multiple ways, as he can hurt a team from inside the arc or from behind it.
For the Lakers, they currently have multiple players that are able to play multiple positions. Morris would fit very nicely with LeBron James, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, and Josh Hart in lineups that could switch heavily. When healthy, the Lakers were a strong defensive team last year because of their ability to switch.
Morris is a pretty solid defender and certainly brings a lot on the offensive end of the court. With his ability to play multiple positions, he would be a valuable weapon either off the bench or in the starting lineup.
– Recent playoff success
For the past six years, the Lakers have not been able to make the playoffs. They thought that this streak was going to be coming to an end when they signed LeBron James, but injuries were too much to overcome for the team.
Now, the Lakers still have a very good roster and it should also be a roster that improves this offseason. After the signing of James last offseason, the Lakers filled out the roster with players that had a lot of playoff and championship experience. While this wasn’t a bad idea, some of those players weren’t necessarily good fits for the Lakers.
With Morris, the Lakers would be getting a player that does have a good amount of playoff experience, and who is also a good fit for the team.
In the playoffs for the Celtics this year, Morris averaged 13.7 points and 8.1 rebounds in 28.2 minutes per game. These are certainly some good numbers for Morris in the postseason, as even though the Celtics fell short of their goals, Morris performed quite well.
While the Lakers are looking to make the playoffs next season, they will also want to advance. The young core didn’t get any playoff experience this past season, and the team will need players who have been there before in order to advance.
– Good three-point shooter
One of the glaring weaknesses for the Lakers last season was their three-point shooter. Being able to shoot the ball effectively from beyond the arc is very important in the NBA now, and it wasn’t something that the Lakers were good at.
In LeBron’s career, he has been surrounded by role players that were generally good three-point shooters and effective at spacing the floor. Despite having the money to surround him with shooters in the offseason, the Lakers didn’t do that. This was certainly a failure by the front office, and hopefully one that they don’t make again.
By adding Morris, the Lakers would be adding a big man that can stretch the floor. At 6’9”, Morris is a very good three-point shooter, as he shot it at 37.5 percent clip last season. For his career, Morris is a 36 percent shooter from beyond the arc.
Adding a floor spacer like Morris would clear the lane for LeBron to get to the basket a lot easier next season. Having big men who can stretch the floor is very important now and we saw the Lakers lacking in that department.
There are certainly a lot of things to like about potentially adding Morris to the Lakers next season. However, it will come down to the price tag ultimately as the Lakers are going to prioritize adding a star.
With recent reports that the Los Angeles Lakers might pursue Marcus Morris, here are three reasons why he would be a good fit.
Now that the disappointing 2018-19 season is behind the Los Angeles Lakers, the franchise will be looking forward to what could be a very good offseason. The Lakers currently have the fourth pick in the NBA Draft and the cap space needed to sign a max level player.
With LeBron James and a strong young core of talent, adding a Top 5 pick and potential another All-Star could make Los Angeles a very dangerous team next season. One of the reasons for the failures of the Lakers this offseason was the players that they surrounded LeBron James with.
James has had a lot of success in his career when he has been surrounded by shooters. However, the Lakers didn’t add any shooters alongside James, and the team was clearly lacking in that area.
According to Shams Charania, the Lakers are one of the teams that might be pursuing Marcus Morris. You can read what Shams said here with a paid subscription to The Athletic.
While Morris isn’t the max level player that the Lakers will be prioritizing, he checks a lot of boxes for Los Angeles. As a player that can shoot and play multiple positions, Morris will likely be a sought-after free agent.
This is a very important offseason for the Lakers after missing the playoffs for the sixth straight season. With the ability to improve this roster, here are three reasons why Marcus Morris would be a good fit with the Lakers.
– Provides versatility
One of the very appealing things about Marcus Morris is his ability to play multiple positions. In the NBA, being able to play two positions has almost become essential now, and Morris is capable of playing at both the small or power forward positions.
Being able to play these two positions is very important on the defensive end of the court. Being able to switch without creating glaring mismatches is critical for team defense, and for success on that end of the court.
On the offensive end, Morris has all the tools to be able to succeed at both positions. Morris is a very capable scorer in multiple ways, as he can hurt a team from inside the arc or from behind it.
For the Lakers, they currently have multiple players that are able to play multiple positions. Morris would fit very nicely with LeBron James, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, and Josh Hart in lineups that could switch heavily. When healthy, the Lakers were a strong defensive team last year because of their ability to switch.
Morris is a pretty solid defender and certainly brings a lot on the offensive end of the court. With his ability to play multiple positions, he would be a valuable weapon either off the bench or in the starting lineup.
– Recent playoff success
For the past six years, the Lakers have not been able to make the playoffs. They thought that this streak was going to be coming to an end when they signed LeBron James, but injuries were too much to overcome for the team.
Now, the Lakers still have a very good roster and it should also be a roster that improves this offseason. After the signing of James last offseason, the Lakers filled out the roster with players that had a lot of playoff and championship experience. While this wasn’t a bad idea, some of those players weren’t necessarily good fits for the Lakers.
With Morris, the Lakers would be getting a player that does have a good amount of playoff experience, and who is also a good fit for the team.
In the playoffs for the Celtics this year, Morris averaged 13.7 points and 8.1 rebounds in 28.2 minutes per game. These are certainly some good numbers for Morris in the postseason, as even though the Celtics fell short of their goals, Morris performed quite well.
While the Lakers are looking to make the playoffs next season, they will also want to advance. The young core didn’t get any playoff experience this past season, and the team will need players who have been there before in order to advance.
– Good three-point shooter
One of the glaring weaknesses for the Lakers last season was their three-point shooter. Being able to shoot the ball effectively from beyond the arc is very important in the NBA now, and it wasn’t something that the Lakers were good at.
In LeBron’s career, he has been surrounded by role players that were generally good three-point shooters and effective at spacing the floor. Despite having the money to surround him with shooters in the offseason, the Lakers didn’t do that. This was certainly a failure by the front office, and hopefully one that they don’t make again.
By adding Morris, the Lakers would be adding a big man that can stretch the floor. At 6’9”, Morris is a very good three-point shooter, as he shot it at 37.5 percent clip last season. For his career, Morris is a 36 percent shooter from beyond the arc.
Adding a floor spacer like Morris would clear the lane for LeBron to get to the basket a lot easier next season. Having big men who can stretch the floor is very important now and we saw the Lakers lacking in that department.
There are certainly a lot of things to like about potentially adding Morris to the Lakers next season. However, it will come down to the price tag ultimately as the Lakers are going to prioritize adding a star.
