“Waiters Island” could be headed West.
The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly are meeting with free-agent shooting guard Dion Waiters on Sunday night, according to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders.
Waiters is coming off a spectacular season with the Miami Heat. He averaged 15.8 points and 4.3 assists per game while almost leading the Heat to the playoffs after the team’s dreadful start to the season.
The Lakers are in need of a player who can create his own shot off the dribble and be an effective catch-and-shoot threat alongside rookie point guard Lonzo Ball and talented sophomore forward Brandon Ingram. And Waiters certainly checks those boxes as he shot 42 percent from the field and knocked down 39 percent of his 3-point attempts in South Beach last season.
Waiters was the No. 4 overall selection by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2012 NBA Draft, and while he’s never quite lived up to the hype, he has shown flashes of dynamic scoring potential in his brief NBA career.
While the Lakers have their eyes on next summer’s prize, Paul George, a short-term contract would be a low-risk investment to make in the explosive guard.
Thumbnail photo via Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports Images
