George Hill is incredulous at his position
The inaugural CSL season, George Hill was the starter for the championship Indiana Pacers. Then, after a first round exit the next year, he was sent to Los Angeles in a multi-player deal, only to be flipped again in a four way trade that saw him change jerseys from red and white to purple and gold, just like DeMar DeRozan. But unlike the meteoric rise and rush to acclaim that his fellow former Clipper received, Hill motored along in a 6th man combo guard role, netting just 3 starts over Jordan Farmar, whose 3 point shooting and slightly better A/TO ratio the coaching staff felt more important than the veteran's all-around skills.
There was a chance for Hill to escape to brighter pastures this summer, as the Lakers were strongly contemplating dealing him for immediate cap space. But then the other player involved was traded in the recent spate of moves, thus ending that possibility. Combined, with 32 starts between the two LA squads, Hill averaged 9.8 points, 3.9 assists and 0.7 steals, shooting 45.2%, 37% from 3 point range, with a 2.3 A/TO ratio, 71.7% drive stop rate, 1.5 TOFC, and a 0.95 PA/SF ratio. With all the chatter about the Lakers' #5 pick, it doesn't seem likely the man who won a ring will see time in the first five this year either.
"It's weird," commented one scout, "Two years as a starter in Indiana, taking the Pacers to the playoffs both years, and then he can't stick as a starter with either LA team. He has the talent, but it seems like no one is really interested in biting on him. It's amazing how fast his value has crashed. You don't normally see that with championship winning guards - especially point guards in this league."
Nor are the Lakers imbued with any sense of urgency to move him. As an $8 million expiring, he has value in and of himself in the offseason before Walter Tavares reaches RFA status, and the last push for the Purple and Gold to make huge free agency splashes before they start have to shelling out for their young core.
The league raved about T.J. McConnell's hustle game
At the first scrimmage, it was already apparent that T.J. McConnell might well be another originally thought of overdraft in the mold of Walter Tavares two years ago. He displayed CSL-starter ready passing and handling, and easily topped Hill and Farmar in defensive drills. In fact, even at the first look, he's already the team's best ballthief, and second best perimeter defender behind Amir Johnson. The consensus league-wide was that the Arizona Wildcat was not only the safest pick to make at #5, but one that was the correct call, despite the presence of more talented players, such as Trevor Lacey. Regardless, McConnell showed already that he's earned the right to be a starter from Day One.
Less impressive was Aaron White, who was on the low end of projections. That said, he's tied with Amir Johnson for the second best defensive rebounder spot, and like the rest of the Lakers' big men, shows a strong knack for drawing fouls. Given his exceptional passing ability, there's growing talk of giving him the spot at SF formerly held by DeAndre Daniels, shifting Johnson to PF, and having Robin Lopez come off the bench. This, of course, assumes that no trades are had involving either Johnson or Lopez, and there's every possibility one or both could find themselves dealt.
Cristiano Felicio managed to get on the stat sheet all three games for Brazil in the Earth Tournament before the host team bowed out in group play. As expected, he came in painfully raw, but there's a lot of excitement about his upside, and the Lakers will find a way to feed him minutes to grow, even if it means sacrificing a few wins. As one Lakers insider observed, "If Cristiano reaches his potentials, he could end up the single biggest steal in the draft. That's how much ability he has."
One thing that's consistent with all three rookies, and was true with Tavares - every one of them has exceptional work ethic, with Felicio the lowest at 73. "It's part of the culture we want to build to be able to get back to our winning ways," Lakers GM Jestor said. "We want guys who will bust ass all day every day, who love the game so much that they'll dedicate themselves 100% to it."
On a final note, after hours of going back and forth and changing their minds multiple times, the Lakers have finally decided to retain DeMar DeRozan's rights, should he decline his PO. Originally the team planned to renounce them, but have since reversed course, due largely to the evaporation of the Hill trade. It's expected the front office will be aggressive in their efforts to retain the breakout star many felt was wrongly snubbed for this year's All-Star game.
