If there is something that the Lakers are losing in their central rotation, it is a player with both sizes and Speed. Marc Gasol has only the former, while Montrezl Harrell boasts the latter. But while they only hired Damian Jones on Friday morning, and he has not yet qualified for the team, he has already put both qualities on full display.
The demonstration of its size came when Jones sat down to talk to the media at Zoom before the Lakers’ game against the Portland Trail Blazers. The camera equipment the team had initially set up had cut off almost the entire forehead where Jones’s 6’11 frame comes to an end, and even after a quick adjustment, he not quite fit yet.
The demonstration of its speed came earlier, even though we didn’t know it yet. After being cut by Suns on Tuesday, Jones was still in Phoenix at around 4 pm on Thursday when he received a call from his agent saying the Lakers wanted to offer him a 10-day deal. He had to get to Los Angeles around 11 pm that night to get a coronavirus test and sign his contract so he could stay active on Friday, and he still needed to rent a car before he left. But Jones hurried and did it 20 minutes in advance.
As a result of his speed in reaching Los Angeles and boasting the Lakers’ lack of size while Anthony Davis is off the pitch, Jones may have a chance, although coach Frank Vogel recognized before the game that Jones was “unlikely” to play against the Blazers. But whenever Jones joins the game, he, Vogel and general manager Rob Pelinka see their skill set as an archetype that Lakers fans have claimed the team has been missing for weeks.
“It’s a little bit like the role of JaVale and Dwight last year, how they would take the rims and protect the rim, things like that. I’m trying to bring up some of the same things, ”said Jones. “Vertical spacing at the offensive end, being able to defend the edge.”
That’s a pretty high comparison for a guy the Lakers are basically bringing to a glorified test, but although he didn’t use the names Howard and McGee, it’s almost identical to the terms in which Vogel described Jones’ game.
“It has vertical spacing on both sides of the ball. The threat of the lob, but also the verticality and the blocking of the shot in the rim. He definitely has a skill set that can help us, ”said Vogel. “He is a talented and very polite young man. So, we are looking forward to taking a look at it in the next 10 days. “
Although, obviously, the first court of this year brings its own unique and positive skill sets, in the season the Harrell and Gasol duo completed only 4 combined alley-oops (counting both dunks and layups)
It seems that the vertical game is something that FO / Coaches want to address https://t.co/Rv3DxUaMFO
– Alex Regla (@AlexmRegla) February 27, 2021
Some of the Lakers are already familiar with their game. In Los Angeles, Jones meets with former Warriors teammate Alfonzo McKinnie – who was also a bit of a player this season – a relationship that Jones believes can help him catch up even faster.
“It’s nice to have ex-teammates I know on the team to show me my role,” said Jones. “Just familiar faces to help me get used to it.”
Joining a championship contender while fighting for his NBA future in his fourth team in five years, Jones will need all the help he can get. But he has already shown that he is willing to make things happen to fight for that chance. Even if it means dropping everything, tracking down a rental car and taking a five-and-a-half hour trip in just under seven hours to get a coronavirus test with no guarantee other than a 10-day salary.
“It was really crazy,” said Jones of the past 24 hours that took him to the Staples Center on Friday.
It would be even crazier if he were able to make an impact on the limited time and opportunities he thinks he has. But hey, he nailed all the tasks that the Lakers have asked him so far. Now he just needs to do it again.
For more Lakers speak, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed at iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.