The Los Angeles Lakers are looking good in the first week of training camp, and there's no better news than the excellent form of veteran backcourt Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant.
Still, there's no denying the Lakers are still a piece away to become a legit playoff contender. The team clearly needs a big man, and Andrew Bynum could be a pretty good risk to solve this problem.
Despite missing on elite free-agents this offseason, the purple-and-gold managed to come up with a competitive roster after a series of deals that landed them the likes of Carlos Boozer, Jeremy Lin and Ed Davis. They also brought back holdovers from last season like Nick Young, Ryan Kelly, Xavier Henry, Wesley Johnson and Jordan Hill to round out their roster.
However, there's obviously a big hole to fill in the middle. Hill, who signed a two-year, $10 million deal, is expected to play at the five-spot, though many analysts consider him a little bit shorter to play at center. Robert Sacre had a significant playing time under Mike D'Antoni last year, then again, his skills-set speaks his eons away to contain elite bigs in the Western Conference.
In short, the Lakers need to add up size. They need a player whom they can rely as a rim protector and solid low-post threat. The question now is where they could ever find one with weeks to go before the start of the 2014-15 season.
Well, the answer might be just around the corner, someone who is unemployed but still oozing with potential despite his troubles on and off the court as of late. Andrew Bynum could be the man the Lakers needed.
Bynum, who last saw action as a member of the Indiana Pacers after he was booted out by the Cleveland Cavaliers, is still hopeful he can play for his old team after seeing career spiral into nothingness since he was involved in that huge four-team blockbuster deal that sent him to the Philadelphia 76ers in 2012.
While it's true that Bynum's childish attitude and knee could be problematic for the Lakers coaching staff, it would be a worth a risk to give a non-guaranteed deal to a guy who once averaged 18.7 points and 11.8 rebounds two seasons ago. The 7-foot Bynum is a beast when healthy and motivated, and there's no better way to resurrect his career than playing for purple-and-gold once again, under the tutelage of two of the best motivators in the game - Kobe Bryant and Byron Scott.
It might be a crazy idea to bring back Bynum, but again, he might also end up as a solution to Lakers' biggest problem in the middle.
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