Los Angeles Lakers bring back center Thomas Bryant

The Los Angeles Lakers have struck again in free agency. According to media reports, the team around superstar LeBron James will bring back Thomas Bryant from the Washington Wizards.

According to Chris Haynes (Yahoo Sports) sign a one-year contract with the Lakers. At the same time, the former Wizards center should get the chance to fight for a starter sport on the five. In addition to the Lakers, the Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and the Utah Jazz were also interested in Big Man.

Bryant will thus get his second chance in LA, the center already played 15 games for the Lakers in the 2017/18 season after they brought him along with Josh Hart from the Utah Jazz on draft day. Bryant was the 42nd pick at the time, but was released after a year and just an average of 4.8 minutes.

For the Wizards, however, Bryant established himself as a starter on the five and in four years in the capital averaged 11 points, 6.2 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 21.6 minutes. Bryant’s strengths are primarily offensive, in two of the four years in Washington the 24-year-old hit over 40 percent from downtown (around 2 attempts per game).

The fact that the Big was still available at this point was mainly due to his injury history. In 2021, Bryant tore his cruciate ligament and therefore only played 27 games in the past season. Due to Bryant’s injury, there are now twelve players in the squad, with rookie coach Darvin Ham having four different players to choose from in Anthony Davis, Wenyen Gabriel, Damian Jones and Bryant.