(R.R. Magellan, also known as “Rey-Rey”, is the founder and editor of the L.A. based-NBA at-large site, The No-Look Pass. For more of Rey-Rey’s work, check out TheNoLookPass.Com.)
Jason Kapono is now a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.
One of the biggest weaknesses of the Lakers in the last few years has been outside shooting. They’ve been in the bottom half of the league when it comes to three-point field goal percentage (17th last year at .352) but the Lakers weren’t scaring anybody from deep.
This is where Kapono comes in. One of the best shooters in the world, Kapono is a career .437 shooter from behind the arc. He’s also a two-time long distance shootout champion so he definitely has the pedigree of a bomber.
The bad news is that he has toiled in obscurity in the last two years. He played 81 games for the Sixers and only 24 last year. He averaged a whopping 0.7 points (not even on 5 minutes per contest) in the 2010-11 campaign. Maybe because as an overall basketball player, he’s not worth very much. He can only do one thing… and that is shoot, shoot, shoot.
But the product of UCLA and Artesia High School can REALLY shoot and the Lakers only got him for that reason. It’s not really a high-risk signing; they only signed Kapono for the veteran minimum ($1.2 million). As long as he’s making his shots, he’ll be okay. He will get a lot of open looks when teams double down on the post or on Kobe (or on Chris Paul, too, but that’s another story).
Of course, there are questions about his defense. I get it; Kapono probably can’t even guard a chair to save his life. But in this squad filled with tenacious perimeter defenders like Matt Barnes and Ron Artest (Metta World Peace), the Lakers can afford to hide him in their defensive schemes. So, again, as long as he buries the open looks the defense gives him, Jason Kapono should be just fine.
Welcome back to the City of Angels, Jason Kapono.
-R.R. Magellan
Warren Wee Lim says
1st post!
Welcome Jason Kapono. Now go to the corner… (and shoot 3s)
robinred says
I am a UCLA grad…but I think this is a bad use of the Lakers’ limited resources. The team already has 3 small forwards, and if the Paul/Pau/Lamar deal goes through, I would prefer to see the vet minimum go for a cheap 4 or 5.
In addition, Kapono, like Walton, was always limited athlectically and may not really be an NBA player anymore.
OTOH, Kapono makes sense if…they think they are getting Howard.
Aaron says
Snoopy)
Its easy to make fun of David. I get it. Who thinks David Stern is a moron here? He is the worlds best anti trust lawyer and the person known as the best commissioner in the history of sports making millions and millions of dollars every year. The guy knows what he is doing. Does anyone really think he didn’t know people would or go crazy when he blocked a trade? Do you really think as the head of a billion dollar business he doesn’t think long and hard with a think tank before putting out press releases? The leagues actions are well thought out and very deliberate.
Darius Soriano says
#2. I’m less concerned about what Kapono makes in salary (the Lakers can continue to fill out their roster w/ minimum contracts and still have their mini-MLE) and more concerned with his limited game. Can the Lakers really afford to play such a one dimensional player? He doesn’t rebound, doesn’t handle, doesn’t defend well, doesn’t make plays for anyone else. Yes, he’s a floor spacer but that’s a lot of deficiency to put on the court in order to achieve spacing and better shooting. Personally, I prefer more complete players even if they’re not as elite at that one set skill.
robinred says
Can the Lakers really afford to play such a one dimensional player? He doesn’t rebound, doesn’t handle, doesn’t defend well, doesn’t make plays for anyone else.
________
Good questions all. My answer would be that they certainly can afford to play him 10-15 minutes a game…if they have Dwight Howard and Chris Paul.
With the actual, real, current, roster–have my doubts.
Aaron says
ESPNSteinLine Marc Stein
Just filed to ESPN w/@Chris_Broussard: New trade framework of original three-team CP3 deal has been submitted to league office for approval
4 minutes ago
Okay… So now we have CP3. Over/ under on announcement of Dwight Howard to Lakers is 2 pm PST
Aaron says
Darius…
You just won’t indulge me will you? Can you please let your site know in light of everything that is about to happen what your take is? Please admit we have a great shot at super team of our own.
DJ says
I saw rich people lost million dollars because they believe in David Stern. NBA wants more teams but they ignore one thing, they don’t have enough good players who can shoot, pass,… , don’t have enough good coaches either.
michael h says
Aloha
If this trade or trades go through we will definitely need front line help. The Knicks need to clear cap space for Chandler. From what I have read, they would like to trade Ronny Turief with no salary coming back, to help clear that space. The Lakers just happen to have a trade exception that would more then cover Ronny’s 4 mil salary. I would love to have Ronny back in purple and gold.
lil' pau says
Could you imagine if Stern vetoed it a second time?!
(Obviously, there’s no way in h*** this revised version isn’t going through, but imagine the reaction if *that* happened).
Igor Avidon says
Now we have 5 small forwards (MWP, Barnes, Ebanks, Luke, Jason) and none of them can play SG. Does this mean at least one of four SF holdovers from last season is on their way out..?
Lakers8884 says
I have to decided to veto any Dwight Howard talks on this site until anything official comes out so that we don’t jinx the team.
Michael, last rumor i heard was that Turiaf is headed to Washington but I’m with you I would have loved to have the guy back in LA
cjm says
what has happened to all the major sports is that the super geniuses running the various leagues think you can just add teams and games and automagically generate more income. in reality there is a fixed amount of money that people will spend, so all that happens is that the quality of the product goes down — and less revenue is produced. same thing happens with taxes; you can only raise them so far and then actual revenue drops.
chris h says
read somewhere the Suns have signed Shannon Brown,
funny expression comes to mind with regard to this trade/no trade business-
the toothpaste is out of the tube
Edwin Gueco says
NBA is given up to Monday to revoke the veto or else players’ union will step in as Fisher reiterated. Now the trade details is being rework as we speak but NO owners want younger draft picks. Will it be fair to assume that we can get back Odom and offer them instead our 4 youths Derrick, Ebanks, Morris and Gaudelock?
http://www.hoopsworld.com/sources-paul-trade-being-reconstructed/
Jason Kapono will be OK as long as he performs what he is told to do. Play five minutes with full intensity and produce at least 3 three pointers within that period.
If we lose Pau, I really believe Dwight is coming by hook (that is demanding a trade to Lakers only ) or by crook ( that is to let his contract expire at end of the year and join the Lakers in Season ’12. Meanwhile, we need Euroleague or D’League players who could sub or play insurance if Bynum goes down. I hope this will not happen or else we lose our trading chips. Having said that, I like the attitude of Socks in dealing with the situation, he just wants to play whether here or elsewhere. I’m more worried of LO who is not only thinking of basketball but also the destination of his reality TV crew.
inwit says
Ebanks and Character are rumored to be part of new deal – Okafor to Lakers.
Lakers8884 says
Where did you hear that Inwit? Don’t mind swapping Okafor for Caracter because he is an undersized big man who won’t get time on the floor because of it, but losing Ebanks stings if that’s the case.
Cdog says
Haven’t been on this site in awhile – but doesn’t the Kapono signing seem wasteful? The argument is that Kapono can spread the floor and we can still have out defense on the floor with World Peace or Barnes.
But, don’t they play the same position?
When can they recover for his lapses.
He would have to guard somebody on the other team, which means the lakers would be pulling a reverse-celtics – playing 4 on 5 on defense.
I get it if he’s needed just for a body – to replace Shannon brown as there’s literally none behind Kobe but ebanks – but I doubt he plays many minutes.
Edwin Gueco says
17,
Cdog, well I trust the new coaching staff to re-energize Jason Kapono now that he’s playing his home grounds. As a Bruin graduate, he will not disappoint his friends here with lopsided performance. He’s no longer playing with any Eastcoast team but among his peers at Westwood or Artesia HS where he became McDonald All American. Besides, Kapono was with the Heat when they got their Championship in 2005 averaging double digit. Can he put those numbers at his age, I think he will, given a new venue on his last year as NBA player.
Rey-Rey says
Matt Barnes can play the 2. And I know in the rare big line-up, they put MWP on the 2. We’ll see how Coach Brown makes these line-ups this season.
cjm says
maybe they will just use him for “last shot” plays.
Aaron says
Breaking News:
New trade has us sending out Character and Ebanks and keeping Odom for trade with Magic. We also get Okefor to play PF next to Dwight
Darius Soriano says
A new post is up.
http://www.forumblueandgold.com/2011/12/10/chris-paul-deal-back-on/
AntiCrust says
I’m OK with Kapono for the veteran minimum salary. The Lakers have always been one of the more diverse teams in terms of ethnicity. Jason Kapono is of Hawaiian and Portuguese descent (as far as I know, Kobe doesn’t know how to speak Portuguese, however I don’t think he would need to, Kapono is bright…I’m sure if they wanted to they could find a common language to speak in front of other players to alert him to which 3 point area they want him to go to and to shoot it). Disappointed that Ron/Metta came into camp not in the greatest shape. He should realize that as he ages, it gets easy to fall out of shape, and harder and harder to get back into shape. To me…he is borderline expendable. I’m not exactly sure by what method, but like everyone else on the roster should be given some time to show what they can do under Coach Brown. I say the trade that was rejected and tweaked and resubmitted isn’t necessary. I’ve never been a Chris Paul fan. I still think that the size of the Laker lineups from the day they acquired Pau back in Feb., 2008 has been an issue with other teams. His “softer” style of play has always been there, although he has had flashes of aggressive play. The positives that he brings on the offensive side can not be disputed. His poor showing against Dallas was a fluke. He’s not going to play like that for an entire season, and Phil Jackson was unraveling as his 4th “Triple” was slipping away. I’m not sure what the Lakers have left in salary maneuverability but how about Delonte West (I assume no relationship to Jerry, so Stern can not veto that acquisition because of nepotism). Phil Jackson never played rookies…I’d like Mike Brown to make a statement in his coaching about that. Assuming they are all on the active roster at one point, I would love to see a lineup of Darius Morris at the 1, Andrew Goudelock at the 2, Ebanks at the 4 Caracter at the 5…oh yeah, KB24 at the 3. That would definitely be a lineup the opposition would not have any scouting reports on….One could write a book on it, and title it “Six seconds or Less: The Second Coming of Showtime”.