With training camp tipping off at long last on Tuesday, the Lakers' 2016-17 campaign is officially set to begin.
Santa Barbara will be the site for this year's six-day camp, which will help determine which of the Lakers' 20 players will end up making the 15-man regular-season roster.
The current pool features a blend of budding young players and seasoned veterans, while promising plenty of intriguing camp battles — particularly in the loaded positions of point guard and power forward.
GUARDS Anthony Brown (SG/SF) The sophomore is looking to find some traction after a rough rookie season that saw him shoot just 31.0 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from 3-point range. A 3-and-D prospect, Brown showed that he has plenty of potential on the latter side at the Las Vegas Summer League, where he was arguably the Lakers' best defender. However, on the other end he bumped his averages up to just 36.1 and 29.4 percent, respectively.
Anthony Brown attacks the rim late for the and one #LakersSummerhttps://t.co/Z5RTrW3kEV
Jose Calderon (PG) Calderon won a bronze medal with Spain at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics this summer despite playing only 25 minutes total. The 34-year-old averaged 7.6 points and a career-low 4.2 assists with New York last year, though he did rank 10th in the NBA in 3-point percentage (41.4). The Lakers acquired him in July along with a pair of future second-round picks for the rights to a player no longer affiliated with the organization.
Postgame Wrap: Kobe and Lou Williams traded clutch baskets with Carmelo before Jose Calderon stepped up to end it: https://t.co/GRpBihNQZg
Jordan Clarkson (SG) Clarkson re-signed with the Lakers over the summer after ranking second among sophomore in scoring last year with 15.5 points per game. Clearly a gifted scorer, he also led the Lakers in total points (1,225) but has expressed a desire to make strides on the defensive side given that he had never been pushed to excel on that end prior to the NBA.
A photo posted by Lakers Scene (@lakersscene) on Aug 23, 2016 at 3:09pm PDT
Marcelo Huertas (PG) A crafty passer, Huertas dazzled at the Olympics where he ranked third among all players in assists (6.6). The 33-year-old also led the Lakers in dimes (3.4) last year despite coming off the bench for each game. He figures to once again contend for the backup point guard role after re-signing in August.
After five games in Rio, Marcelo Huertas exits with the third-most assists (33) of any player. https://t.co/OHtliOLz1E
Julian Jacobs (PG) By leading his conference in assists (5.4) and using his remarkable athleticism on both ends, Jacobs took home First Team All-Pac-12 honors. He then played for Indiana at the Orlando Summer League, averaging 4.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in 11.5 minutes.
Julian Jacobs shined down the street at USC, leading his conference in assists while earning a First Team All-Pac-12 selection. https://t.co/siIqwafREz
D'Angelo Russell (PG) Tabbed as the leader of the Lakers, Russell sure looked comfortable in that role at the Las Vegas Summer League where he put up 21.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. Despite becoming the youngest player to ever hit 130 3-pointers, the 20-year-old is looking to move past an up-and-down rookie season that saw him relegated to the bench for more than two months.
Buzzer beater! D'Angelo Russell still has ice in his veins.
Lou Williams (SG) Possibly the team's most reliable scorer, Williams contributed 15.3 points last season, while hitting an impressive 5.3 free throws, putting him among the best in the league at drawing contact. The 11-year veteran has enjoyed considerable success off the bench in the past, winning Sixth Man of the Year in 2015.
The Answer had plenty of love for Lou Williams, Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant and Tyronn Lue as he entered the Hall.https://t.co/9pTYV9rWOI
FORWARDS Zach Auguste (PF) A Third Team All-ACC selection, Auguste provided athleticism and hustle for Notre Dame last year. Despite leading his conference in rebounds (10.7) and ranking 10th in the country in total boards (386), Auguste went undrafted and is looking to improve on a solid start at Summer League, where he pitched in 5.2 points and 4.0 rebounds in 15.8 minutes.
A photo posted by Lakers Scene (@lakersscene) on Jul 8, 2016 at 9:15pm PDT
Tarik Black (PF/C) Despite averaging the fewest minutes of any Laker last year (12.7), Black is seen as a valuable piece under new head coach Luke Walton. He averaged just 3.4 points last year but is 250 pounds of energy and muscle, and General Manager Mitch Kupchak said his “strengths are well-suited for the style of play we envision for our team” when he re-signed in August.
A photo posted by Lakers Scene (@lakersscene) on Sep 15, 2016 at 8:09pm PDT
Luol Deng (SF) A player whose resume includes four All-Star selections, the 2014 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award and the 2007 NBA Sportsmanship Award, Deng is an ideal veteran for his young Lakers teammates to learn from. Acquired in free agency, the 31-year-old is still capable of coming up big on the court, too, as he was Miami's third-leading scorer (13.3) and second-leading rebounder (5.9) during its playoff run last year.
@luoldeng9 has a message for Lakers fans:
A video posted by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Jul 8, 2016 at 10:19am PDT
Brandon Ingram (SF) As the second-overall pick of the 2016 NBA Draft, expectations are high for Ingram, who was voted the player most likely to have the best career by his fellow rookies. The 19-year-old wasn't always effective at Summer League (12.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 41.2 field goal percentage), but he did explode for 22 points and 9-of-13 shooting in the finale against Utah.
Larry Nance Jr. (PF) Nance excelled for the Lakers in just about every area at Summer League, averaging 9.0 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 2.8 steals and 1.8 blocks. Now fully recovered after spraining his wrist in the Vegas finale, the athletic freak will look to build upon a surprisingly fruitful rookie season that saw him contribute 7.3 points and 6.0 rebounds during 22 games in the starting lineup.
Julius Randle (PF) After a strong debut season, Randle joined Russell and Ingram in Las Vegas for USA Basketball training camp in July. His first full season saw him rank 10th in the NBA in rebounds (10.2) while averaging a double-double with 11.3 points. He suffered a laceration to the webbing between his right middle and ring fingers in August, but will have no restrictions at camp other than taping the digits together.
A video posted by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Jul 18, 2016 at 4:29pm PDT
Thomas Robinson (PF) One of the final signings to the Lakers' training camp roster, Robinson comes to L.A. from Brooklyn — the fifth team he has played for in as many years since Sacramento drafted him fifth overall in 2012. Robinson has yet to display his full potential, averaging 4.9 points and 4.8 rebounds in his career, though he did give a glimpse of it at the end of last year, as the four highest-scoring games of his career all came in the final month. Thomas Robinson finished last season on a high note, averaging 15.3 points & 13.0 rebounds in his last six games. https://t.co/hFMR33274g— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) September 21, 2016
Thomas Robinson finished last season on a high note, averaging 15.3 points & 13.0 rebounds in his last six games. https://t.co/hFMR33274g
Travis Wear (PF) On a roster full of power forwards, Wear will look to claw his way up like he did in 2014, when he earned the final spot on the New York Knicks. The Huntington Beach native played in the Spanish League last year, tallying 7.5 points and 5.2 rebounds in 20.5 minutes while shooting 44.8 percent.
Local product and former New York Knick Travis Wear joins the Lakers just ahead of training camp. https://t.co/3vtwWcHSJg
Metta World Peace (SF) The final spot on the training camp roster was taken by the longest-tenured player on the list. World Peace, 36, will attempt to play in his 17th NBA season after returning to the Lakers last year. Having spent the prior campaign in China and Italy, he played sparingly in L.A., contributing just 5.0 points on 31.1 percent shooting with 2.5 rebounds in 16.9 minutes.
A photo posted by Lakers Scene (@lakersscene) on Aug 8, 2016 at 6:38pm PDT
Yi Jianlian (PF/C) After five years of playing in China, Yi is all set to make his return to the NBA. The Heshan native averaged 26.4 points and 9.2 rebounds last season, though numbers tend to be heightened in China due to the league-wide lack of defense. However, he did also show up big at the Olympics where he was the third-leading scorer (20.4), though his team went 0-5.
Yi gets his first Lakers workout under his belt.
A photo posted by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Sep 16, 2016 at 12:57pm PDT
Nick Young (SF/SG) Both on and off the court, last season was the worst of Young's nine-year career. Looking to keep that all in the past, the L.A. native hopes to make amends for a season dampened by career-lows in scoring (7.3) and field goal percentage (33.9), as well as his highly-publicized incident with Russell.
Keep it Swaggy today, Nick!! pic.twitter.com/ZnmyxAYk3c
CENTERS Timofey Mozgov (C) After winning the NBA title with Cleveland, Mozgov spent most of the offseason overseas, helping Russia qualify for EuroBasket 2017 with a 4-0 record. The 7-foot-1, 265-pounder didn't play much during the Cavaliers' playoff run, though he did shoot a career-best 56.5 percent during the regular season. He averaged 6.3 points and 4.4 rebounds in 17.4 minutes — a dip that came in part due to knee surgery he underwent during the 2015 offseason.
A video posted by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Jul 9, 2016 at 12:07pm PDT
Ivica Zubac (C) The 7-foot-1, 240-pound Croatian fell to 32nd in the 2016 NBA Draft, but early signs say that he should've been swooped up well before than that. One of the more intriguing prospects on the roster, Zubac surprised with his mobility and punished with his size at Summer League, putting up 10.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.6 blocks while shooting 64.7 percent.
Zubac showed off his length with 6 blocks in the #LakersSummer finale. #ZuBlocka
A video posted by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Jul 15, 2016 at 9:42pm PDT
