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The Los Angeles Lakers have not made any significant changes compared to last season. Their roster was more or less the same, with Colin Castleton, Harry Giles II, and Skylar Mays having retained two-way contracts with their respective teams by the close of the season.
Of all three, Castleton is the only remaining player from the Lakers, following the various offseason movements. Post-2024 NBA Draft, the Lakers signed Blake Hinson and Armel Traore as undrafted free agents, also to two-way deals, joining Castleton in training camp.
Although such measures have been less than adequate, Castleton remains the scholar with the continuing injury problems in the front court. Sources highly placed indicate that the Lakers will cut Hinson and recruit Christian Koloko in his place.
Despite not getting another shot with the Lakers again, Mays was later claimed by the Minnesota Timberwolves, abandoning his hopes in the final bid New Orleans Hornets hoops hype. Specifics are not filled in, but Mays seems likely to be offered an exhibit 10 or a two-way contract enabling him to train with the Timberwolves and play in the G-League.
The Atlanta Hawks drafted Mays in the second round of the 2020 NBA Draft. During the last season, he started with a two-way deal with the Portland Trail Blazers. Eventually, he got a regular NBA deal, indicating that he was doing well while on a fill-in as a starter due to injuries.
Over that stretch, Mays managed to notch 12 points and 8.2 assists per game for five games. Mays impressed owner and team president Paul Allen, yet the young bit sensation was terminated in January by the Trail Blazers.
Mays Signs Two-Way Deal
The Lakers did not waste time, and Mays was signed by the franchise with a two-way contract.
He was announced as being under contract with the South Bay Lakers. He spent time on the roster of the main Lakers team and their G League team, the South Bay Lakers, seeing action mostly in inconsequential parts of the game.
In 17 games, Mays averaged 1.3 points and shot 40% from three. During his stint with the G League, Mays put up impressive numbers in seven games, averaging 21.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.6 assists and shooting 48.6% from the floor and 43.2% from the perimeter.
Under the critical eye of the institution as a whole, W. Thompson, especially chest-thumping in the way sporting transfer players Bronny James and Dalton Knecht drafted into the offseason, finally spoke to the issues surrounding the defense of the championship aspirations.
Buss discussed the need to refrain from media gimmicks and focus on ‘playing’ and ‘winning’ instead. "Really, you gotta play basketball and win games. I know the criticism out there. I know social media is rough waters for everybody," Buss said. "There’s always controversy being stirred up on social media.
That’s why it doesn’t really serve me to hype everything up. It’s just, you gotta do the work. And that’s how our organization operates. We do the work. We worry about what we can control and let the work speak for itself."
English (US)