Lakers

The Lakers are starting Kendrick Nunn and Damian Jones along with the Lakers' Big 3 in training camp and LeBron James says he will play more preseason games ...

"More than I played last year," James said of his expected preseason workload. Again, being a presence in the paint defensively." None of it will work unless there is a comfort level established between the role players and James, who will control the action on offense as he always does. Creating a constant threat at the rim. "Damian is just a really young, athletic big," Ham said of the 6-11 Jones. "So, I told him he's going to be a big part of what I'm trying to do and he's embraced it and you can tell by his play thus far." Tries to protect the rim. He can jump to the ceiling. Nunn's inclusion in the first unit illustrates just how much difference a year makes, as the 27-year old missed all of last season with a bone bruise in his right knee. committed its entire taxpayer's midlevel exception to sign Nunn in the summer of 2021 as its marquee free agent, filling out the rest of the roster with veteran minimum deals. "He runs like a deer. That's all that matters."

The Lakers' tumultuous offseason has finally come to an end, as training camp allows the team to start focusing on basketball again.

But for now, Ham has elected to go with Jones, the more traditional center, alongside Davis in the front court. The Lakers haven't seen Nunn at all since he signed a two-year contract last year. But for now, Ham has gone with a bit of a surprising first unit as he navigates his first season with the Purple and Gold.

Apr. 7, 2012; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Darvin Ham against the Phoenix Suns at the US Airways Center.

Though the Lakers would likely be far better defensively with Patrick Beverley starting instead of Nunn, Ham did speak highly of Nunn’s defensive work in camp. Ham did add however that he has not yet decided on a five-man group, There are even

Quin Snyder has been consulting new Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham after stepping away from the Utah Jazz in June.

Snyder and Ham have a long history together dating back to their with the Austin Toros in 2008. coaches served on the Lakers bench as assistants during the 2011-12 season before Snyder left for an opportunity with CSKA Moscow. “I talk to Quin Snyder,” Ham said after day one of Lakers training camp.

Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham has used many different lineups early in training camp to figure out the best configurations.

They’ve adjusted to it well and kept it rolling, and made the best of it. It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more! Under Ham, the Lakers are likely to utilize Davis at the 5 far less frequently than with Vogel in charge last year. Damian Jones and Wenyen Gabriel, Thomas Bryant — we’ve been rotating people all over the place just to see.” And on offense, the 49-year-old wants to make Anthony Davis [the focal point](https://lakersnation.com/lakers-rumors-lebron-james-on-board-with-darvin-ham-running-offense-through-anthony-davis/2022/08/10/) — with the blessing of LeBron James. But Ham is yet to figure out the supporting cast behind Davis and James.

The Los Angeles Lakers are still tinkering with lineups, but Darvin Ham has gone with one unit for most of the first week of camp.

“At the end of the day, it’s really minutes. The combo guard has averaged 15.0 points per game in his career and owns the highest career three-point percentage on the roster (36.4). Ham wants to see Westbrook (along with everybody else) display defensive effort and embrace a team-first role before naming opening-night starters. That Nunn and Jones have gotten the initial nods shouldn’t come as a total surprise. They’ve adjusted to it well and kept it rolling, and made the best of it. Jones provides valuable athleticism, length, rim-running, and rim-protection, and he was effective in a brief stint as the Lakers’ starting center in 2020.

As the Lakers continue training camp, it sounds like new head coach Darvin Ham has been experimenting with a few different variations on what could be the ...

You can follow Harrison on Twitter at [@hmfaigen](https://twitter.com/hmfaigen). Do you want to see the team give a few different units a look, or are you happy with this one? Beverley has shot nearly 38% from deep for his career on the other hand, and would seem to give the team a bit more spacing and defense than Nunn in the first group, but it also does sound like this is early on, and it’s good that there appears to be true competition for the spot between him, Nunn and Austin Reaves. Again, it’s early, so this is certainly nothing to overreact to, but who do you think should start when the Lakers tip off their preseason schedule on Monday? More surprising is that Thomas Bryant didn’t get a mention as someone the team is evaluating as a starter. Nunn — a career 36.4% 3-point shooter — would give the team at least a little spacing alongside Russell Westbrook in the backcourt, but given that LeBron James (34.6%) would be arguably the most proven shooter in that lineup, it would hardly be ideal from a spacing perspective.

With three practices in the books, and only one remaining before Monday's preseason opener, it's been business as usual for LeBron James.

“You start to get more and more into the game, watching more and more film, more and more practices and it starts to come with time. “Kendrick today was killing,” said Austin Reaves, who looks to be firmly in the rotation as well, and still a possibility as a starter. Westbrook and Davis have of course played with LeBron, as has Jones, who looked good rolling to the rim and catching LeBron lobs in his eight games with the Lakers in 2020-21, when he converted 16 of 17 field goal attempts.

Coach Darvin Ham said Damian Jones and Kendrick Nunn were on first unit at times Friday, but it's unclear how many exhibitions LeBron James will play.

“It’s been fun getting back on the floor, getting back with the unit and just working our habits. “My staff and I, we’ll get to that, man,” Ham said. “It’s just the next one for me,” James said. But definitely my coaching staff and I, we have had light discussions about what that’s going to look like, how many preseason games, how many minutes.” “More than I played last year,” James said. More than I played last year.”

The Lakers held their chips over the summer when it came to trading their first round picks but they still remain ready to move at the right opportunity.

The Lakers did not put all their chips on the table but their cards are still in their hands. Positioned with a huge expiring contract and multiple draft picks, the Lakers would be in a great spot to take advantage of the situation. It’s fair, then, for Lakers fans to be apprehensive about the whole matter. While many of the possibilities faded away this summer, not all of them are gone for the Lakers. Based on seemingly every report, the only thing the franchise remains committed to is finding the perfect deal to part with Westbrook and the picks for. But Westbrook’s contract doesn’t become any less valuable as an expiring contract and, in fact, will look more appealing to teams as the season goes along.

After the Lakers went 0-6 in the preseason last year, with James playing in three of those games, he plans to be on the court more as the team adjusts to a new ...

If it calls for me being on the wing, I can do that. “If it calls for me being a screen setter, I can do that. “If it calls for me having to handle the ball a little bit more, I can do that,” James said. “There’s not much switching with his game, you kind of guard your own going through pick-and-rolls and stuff like that, so it’s different but I mean there’s a lot of recipes to success,” he said. Of the group, Nunn might be the biggest breakthrough player after missing all of last season with a bone bruise in his knee. The preseason is always a bit of a balancing act, and even more so for new coach Darvin Ham trying to implement his style and system.

With a new season and a new signature shoe on the horizon, Los Angeles Lakers All-Star LeBron James is hoping to return to the NBA playoffs in 2023.

The 18-time All-Star does have his sites set on breaking an all-time Lakers legend's all-time NBA record this year. It's worth noting that the Chosen One does already possess the all-time record in NBA points scored, incorporating both the , above Cap, who has been bumped to second place. Even assuming he misses 10 or more games, James should still surpass Abdul-Jabbar's record tally at some point this year. James reaffirmed his confidence in the team moving forward, despite the club's disappointing 33-49 run in 2021-22. The four-time MVP and four-time champ also may be further cementing his place among the game's all-time greats in another way this season. I’m committed to the franchise for as long as my contract is.”

LeBron James and Anthony Davis are the only guaranteed starters for the Lakers.

Second-year guard [Austin Reaves](/nba/players/2268681/austin-reaves/) and trade acquisition [Patrick Beverley](/nba/players/1685200/patrick-beverley/) have been mentioned as candidates to supplant him in the backcourt, whereas [Damian Jones](/nba/players/2105182/damian-jones/) and [Thomas Bryant](/nba/players/2202681/thomas-bryant/) are competing for the starting job at center. If the Lakers do insist upon starting a non-shooting center, there is going to be even more pressure on them to bench Westbrook for more of a shooting threat like Beverley. [LeBron James](/nba/players/400553/lebron-james/) and [Anthony Davis](/nba/players/1992786/anthony-davis/) are going to start for the [Los Angeles Lakers](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/teams/LAL/los-angeles-lakers/) when healthy.

Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham revealed Friday the first unit he's been working with at training camp thus far, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN. That.

But sources say first-year head coach Darvin Ham, with the full backing of the organization, is ready and willing to make whatever difficult rotation decisions might lie ahead in the interest of team success." Nothing came to fruition, however, and Westbrook is still with the team. 16 that "the prospect of Westbrook coming off the bench is being strongly considered."

One of the big questions regarding the Los Angeles Lakers this season is who will be in their starting lineup. Other than LeBron James and Anthony Davis, there have been three spots that have seemingly been open, and head coach Darvin Ham seemed ...

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Guys like Patrick Beverley, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Thomas Bryant, Damian Jones, Troy Brown Jr., and Lonnie Walker will need to go through the arduous process ...

“You start to get more and more into the game, watching more and more film, more and more practices and it starts to come with time. This factor, for sure, was one of the reasons behind LA’s decision to bring him back. They will also need to make the necessary adjustments to their respective games now that they’re set to play alongside LeBron James.