Lakers Land Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Address Need At Shooting Guard
For the first time since Kobe Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers have some semblance of star power at shooting guard in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
For a team that wasn’t supposed to “a major player” in free agency this year, the Los Angeles Lakers made quite the splash on Tuesday night. After meeting with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope earlier in the day, the Lakers struck a deal with the 24-year-old shooting guard.
Heading into the summer, Caldwell-Pope was thought of as the top free agent shooting guard available, according to Bleacher Report. However, because he was a restricted free agent at the time, it seemed unlikely any team but the Detroit Pistons were in the running for his services, especially because the team had previously stated they would “match any offer sheet” for Caldwell-Pope, according to Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.
Landing KCP seemed like a pipe dream until the Pistons started engaging in trade talks with the Boston Celtics, who needed to shed salary in order to secure Gordon Hayward. Eventually, Detroit would swing a deal for 26-year-old shooting guard Avery Bradley, who was just coming off a career year with the Boston Celtics. After landing Bradley, the Pistons renounced the rights to KCP, making him an unrestricted free agent.
Prior to renouncing his rights, the Pistons reportedly offered Caldwell-Pope a five-year, $80 million deal to stay in Detroit, but the offer “wasn’t even close” to what he was seeking, according to Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated. Unfortunately, by the time Caldwell-Pope hit the open market, teams were running out of cap space. In fact, only three teams had the cap space to offer KCP more than the $16 million he reportedly turned down: the Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers and Atlanta Hawks.
Of the teams mentioned, the Hawks posed the biggest threat. Not only could they offer him similar money to what the Nets and Lakers could offer, but Caldwell-Pope had ties to Atlanta, having gone to high school and college in Georgia. They also desperately needed a shooting guard after they decided not to match Tim Hardaway Jr.’s huge four-year, $71 million deal with the New York Knicks.
Alas, a homecoming wasn’t in the cards, as Atlanta shifted their focus to their front-court, signing big man Dewayne Dedmon to a multi-year contract earlier on Tuesday. Caldwell-Pope had his decision made for him at that point, resulting in him signing a one-year deal with Lakers.
Luckily, his arrival couldn’t have come at a better time.
Fit:
Upon arrival, Caldwell-Pope makes the Lakers a better team defensively. Last season, the Lakers were ranked No. 28 in points per game and dead last in defensive rating. A large part of that had to do with their defensively incapable backcourt duos, specifically the combination of Jordan Clarkson and D’Angelo Russell. During the 2015–16 campaign, the largest sample size of the Clarkson/Russell backcourt, they allowed 118.1 points per 100 possessions. In other words, the two played as much defense as a traffic cone when they shared the floor together.
Had the Lakers not signed KCP, their backcourt wouldn’t have fared much better this year. Prior to his arrival, the Lakers had two true shooting guards on the roster: David Nwaba and Josh Hart. Nwaba, in his lone season with the purple and gold, impressed with his borderline-elite defensive instincts, but was less spectacular on the offensive end. Hart, on the other hand, is a little harder to project, considering he has yet to play a single regular season NBA game. However, during his four years at Villanova, it was clear he was better at getting to the basket and scoring, rather than locking guys up on the perimeter.
Without KCP, the Lakers’ backcourt would have made the Clarkson/Russell backcourt duo look like Patrick Beverley and Tony Allen.
Caldwell-Pope also lifts a heavy load off rookie Lonzo Ball’s shoulders. As gifted as an offensive player Ball might be, he has been less impressive on the defensive end. While that might change as he further develops his game, he’s going to need all the help he can get in the backcourt right now. Having a top-tier defender at your disposal is plenty help.
Needs Improvement:
Offensively is where KCP is a work in progress.
Caldwell-Pope’s role in Luke Walton’s offense will depend on how fast Ball and Brandon Ingram develop their game. Assuming they’re both lights out shooter from day one — which is assuming a lot — KCP won’t be asked to shoot a ton. Instead, he’ll run the break on the wings and use his athleticism to create open looks for himself. With Ball’s vision, he’ll get a lot of easy buckets.
However, if Ball and Ingram struggle offensively (the most likely scenario), KCP might find himself in a tough situation. At just 24 years old, his game still needs a bit of polishing, especially on the offensive end. KCP shot below 40 percent from the field for the second time in his four-year career. Only sophomore Justise Winslow shot worse from the field on 12 or more attempts last season.
In fact, Caldwell-Pope regressed in both field goal percentage and points per game from the season prior. If he’s asked to do too much on the offensive end, expect his production to go down once again.
One area KCP did improve in, however, was his outside shooting. He shot a career-high 35 percent from behind the arc while attempting a career-high 5.8 3-pointers per game. While those percentages aren’t as glamorous as some of the other shooting guards in the league, there’s enough reason to be excited about his progress as a shooter.
KCP shot nearly 50 percent on corner 3-pointers last season, putting him alongside sharpshooters like Danny Green, Kyle Korver and Klay Thompson. And it’s only going to get better from here on out.
With all due respect to his former teammates, KCP has never played with a playmaker as skilled as Lonzo Ball. Not only will he gets better looks cutting to the basket, but he will benefit from Ball’s elite court vision, which will get him open shots on the perimeter. If he knocks them down with some consistency, he’s going to have himself quite the year in Los Angeles.
Grade: A
For the Lakers, signing KCP on a one-year deal was a no-brainer. They get a young, high-upside player while preserving cap space for next summer.
It’s Caldwell-Pope who took the biggest gamble here. If things don’t work out in Los Angeles, he might regret turning down the $16 million annual salary the Pistons offered him. But, all signs point to KCP having success in Los Angeles with the talented young roster the front office has constructed. Assuming he balls out, he could be looking at a significant pay raise next season, whether it’s from the Lakers or another team.
