Los Angeles Lakers: Assessing the impact of Andrew Bogut’s signing

Bogut’s on-court fit

Andrew Bogut had a season to forget last year, but his level of play for Australia at the 2016 Olympics showed how great of an impact the big man can have when he’s healthy. Before diving into the fit, take a moment to watch the passing and cutting video (via Adam Gierlach) below as a reminder for what type of player the Lakers signed for a discount:

Bogut will come off the bench for the Los Angeles Lakers, playing behind fellow new addition Brook Lopez. With each of these veteran centers having their own injury history, I’d like to see their minutes staggered so Lopez is fresh for the fourth quarter. This opens up minutes in the first and third quarters for Bogut to play with the starters, pairing the two best passers on the team together in him and Lonzo Ball.

Bogut sets hard screens for guards and is a great decision-maker when receiving the ball off the screen. Bogut can take the ball up and run an offense, something that will be useful on a team lacking true point guards after Lonzo. He is an underrated finisher around the rim and doesn’t clog the paint because of his ability to pass from the perimeter.

Interior defense will be his most welcome attribute to the team. After Lopez, the Lakers don’t have a player that can be trusted with protecting the rim. Having Bogut play with the second unit gives coach Walton two seven-footers that may not be the quickest on their feet, but are intelligent defenders that make opponents think twice when heading into the paint — not to mention how much he improves the bench’s offense.

Of course, the big question mark surrounding the Aussie is his health. The best ability is availability and it’s hard to gauge my excitement around a 32-year-old player with a list of injuries throughout his career while also coming off a broken tibia. However, there’s little doubt in the positive impact he will have if he can stay on the court.