LAKERS ROLE PLAYER SIGNIFICANCE RANKINGS

WRITTEN + EDITED BY JORDYN BONTRAGER

With all due respect to the Lakers’ dynamic constellation of LeBron James x Luka Doncic x Austin Reaves, it takes an entire team’s full focus on the overall mission in order for a season to yield championship hardware. On top of that, there must be a commander in charge who is capable of putting all of the puzzle pieces together as close to perfectly as possible.

Fortunately for the Purp’ & Gold, the supporting cast has been nothing shy of excellent over the course of the past few weeks. The level of energy that the world is witnessing from everyone on the team recently has been top shelf, and it is clear that whatever wise words Sergeant JJ Redick is relaying in the locker room/huddles seem to be resonating in the minds of his soldiers.

Every individual piece will play a crucial part in this club’s pursuit of a championship, but some will certainly stand above others in terms of how critical they will be to the team’s success. At the end of the day, here is how each Laker support piece ranks with regards to their overall importance moving forward.

15 = Christian Koloko

While the team might not have a bonafide starting center on this team (no disrespect to Jax Hayes), the amount of lowkey solid backup bigs off the bench is quietly impressive. You could do much, much worse than Christian Koloko as a break-in-case-of-emergency option in the frontcourt. Having him as your 5th-6th option at center is a privilege, but with so many other guys ahead of him on the depth chart he is unlikely to see much court time in the big leagues looking ahead to the rest of the SZN.

14 = Bronny James

Bronny has proven his hecklers silly via his solid performance (26.9 MPG | 13.4 PPG | 3.4 RPG | 3.9 APG | 1.1 SPG | 0.7 BPG) at the G League level throughout his rookie year. He still has a long ways to go before becoming a legitimate NBA rotation piece, but give the 20-year-old some time.

13 = Markieff Morris

The Morris twins have long been known for their combination of gritty spirit x fiery attitude, and Markieff in particular seems to be extremely well-respected by his teammates behind closed doors. He might not be as integral to the Lakers now as he was back during the 2020 championship run (dropped 19 points in Game 3 of the Finals), but having a veteran presence of his magnitude is an absolute luxury.

12 = Alex Len

While Alex Len may not have been the flashiest of names on the big man buyout market following the infamous Mark Williams folly, his inking was nevertheless a solid one. The 7-footer from Ukraine has been at least an average NBA big man for over a decade, and will need to remain ready in the event that his number is called into the line of duty.

11 = Shake Milton

With so much talent on the wing/perimeter, there just are not many minutes to spare for Milton. But just like Len, he must stay battle-ready for the times that his team needs him on the floor (like he did when he splashed 2x huge 3’s last time out against the Clippers).

10 = Cam Reddish

For as much slander as the dude receives, Cam Reddish is realistically not a bad body to have off your bench. His shooting consistency has been wildly sporadic during his entire career, but there is no denying the smooth potential he has showcased at times offensively. Defensively is where he has made the majority of his impact with the Lakers, and he has the right blend of athleticism + size to hang with both smaller, quicker guards and bigger wings.

9 = Trey Jemison III

If you have heard Trey Jemison III speak recently, than you know how genuinely grateful he is to be in the two-way position that he is currently in. The big fella’s inner sense of bliss has translated to an outer showing of hard-nosed toughness on the boards/in the paint. The 4th-year center is making a serious case for a standard NBA contract, and has rapidly transformed into a favorite amongst the fanbase via his high octane sense of energy whenever he is on the court.

8 = Jordan Goodwin

Just like Jemison, fellow two-way player Jordan Goodwin is also in the midst of his 4th NBA campaign. After catching the attention of front office execs through his strong performance to close out last season with the injury-plagued Grizzlies (17 GP | 12 GS | 10.0 PPG | 8.0 RPG (!) | 4.5 APG | 0.5 BPG | 1.5 SPG), he had a clear cut case for a standard NBA contract this offseason. Instead of pouting when that did not come to fruition, he continued working before the winds of opportunity blew him to Los Angeles in early February. Now, he is a rotation regular for the league’s most polarizing team and appears on the verge of a potential promotion.

7 = Maxi Kleber

It is pretty easy to forget that Maxi Kleber is a Laker. Since his arrival from Dallas, the 6’10” big man has yet to see a second on the court as he continues rehabilitating the fractured foot he suffered back in late January. Thankfully, rumor has it that the German big man aims to return to action prior to the postseason. His stout defense and proven ability to space the floor (career 35.4% on 3.1 attempts from deep/game) would assuredly provide a major boost to the rotation.

6 = Dalton Knecht

Across the team’s last 2x dubs over the crosstown rival Clippers, Knecht4 connected on 7-10 from the great beyond. He has clearly moved on from the his vetoed trade, and is beginning to build chemistry balling beside Luka. With so much elite table-setting making things happen around him, Knecht should have a bunch of beautiful looks coming his way in the weeks to come. If he continues canning them, he might just re-insert himself back into the thick of the wide open Rookie of the Year race.

5 = Gabe Vincent

He cooled off considerably after a scalding start to February (17-38 from deep in the team’s first 5x games of that month), but Gabe Vincent has things back on the right track with regards to his shooting after hitting 3-6 triples in Sunday’s victory. His suffocating style of defense at the point of attack has been a big reason why the team has the league’s best Defensive Rating (107.2) over the course of the past 15x games, and the team will count on him to continue hoisting (and burying) outside shots with supreme confidence.

4 = Jaxson Hayes

In the 8x games that Luka Doncic + Jaxson Hayes have suited up together thus far, the athletic freak is averaging 7.1 PPG x 4.4 RPG x 1.3 BPG x 0.9 SPG while shooting 80.6% from the field (!). Obviously, the 24-year-old (turns 25 in May) may be a bit overcast in his present position. But we have seen the type of cohesion that Doncic had with similarly skilled/sized Dereck Lively II with the Mavericks, and it would be fair to peg Hayes as the better of the two big men at this specific moment in time.

3 = Dorian Finney-Smith

It must have been comforting for Doncic to know that he would be reuniting with former running mate DFS when word spread of the Slovenian’s shipment from Texas to California. Finney-Smith is the prototypical 3&D player in the modern NBA, nailing open outside shots and harassing the best perimeter (and occasionally interior) scorers defensively. Bank on seeing a ton of DFS moving forward, as well as his outside shooting stroke (37.2%) improving with increased reps.

2 = Jarred Vanderbilt

Some folks may elect to slot DFS over Vando in this debate. Let the record show that we are not some folks. It should come as a surprise to no one that the Lakers possess a 13-2 record in the games in which Vanderbilt’s status has been active. The Kentucky product serves as a relentless x neverending spring of energy + toughness, and has the unique blend of athleticism x size (6’8”x 214 lbs) to defend virtually anyone in the league. He is the type of player who could lay an egg in the scoring department for the entire rest of the season but remain as crucial to the team’s aspiration as anyone on the team.

1 = Rui Hachimura

While most of his numbers this season (13.3 PPG x 5.2 RPG x 50.6% FT x 76.5% FT) fall in line with his career output, it has been refreshing to see Hachimura’s continued evolution as a shooter (41.0% 3FG on a career high 4.1 attempts/game). There is never any sort of hesitation from him when it comes to letting it fly, and that type of confidence will be instrumental in the overall outcome of the 2024-2025 season for the Lakers. Unfortunately, he will have to re-discover that same rhythm in the near future as he currently battles his way through a knee injury setback. If he can pick right back up where he left off upon his inevitable return, it will go a long way as the squad starts to cement it’s chemistry prior to the quickly approaching playoff push.