I recall Dion Waiters playing on the Thunder as they looked to make him the third option behind Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant which
was a failure. Dion Waiters got his 4 year contract from Pat Riley but grew disgruntled dealing with injuries. He had a very impressive game against the Warriors in which he finished the Warriors off with a dagger 3 which got the Miami Heat Arena jumping, Dion Waiters had aspirations of picking up where Dwyane Wade left off and I actually thought he was ready to prove himself to be one of the top scorers in the game. I really believed he could have averaged 23-26 ppg and Miami was going to be where he made his breakout but did not work out like I expected.
On to the Lakers the team I believe will win the Title and I honestly think the Lakers should take a shot on Dion Waiters. I reckon back to the 2017 Finals where the Cavaliers were short on depth, Deron Williams forgot how to play basketball and was downright terrified of the Golden State Warriors. He scored a total of 5 points that whole Series which went 5 games which taught me depth is crucial. Big LeBron James fan here but even I have to admit LeBron is going to need someone aside from Davis to create their own shot, there aren’t a ton of shot creators available I’m not putting all my confidence on an inexperienced Kyle Kuzma who has never played in the Playoffs to deliver a big game consistently.
Which brings me to Dion Waiters, he is 28 years old he was part of the Miami Heat team which went from 11-30 and surged to a 30-11 record in the second half of the season and made the Playoffs a couple years back. He was awarded a $52 million dollar contract by the Miami Heat which gave him an overpaid label quick but if he is willing to buy in to what the Lakers have going I have no problem with the Lakers signing him. Just looking at the Laker bench I don’t trust Alex Caruso,Kyle Kuzma,Rajon Rondo, or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to get me a big basket in the Playoffs. Dion Waiters has always exuded confidence off and on the basketball court, even if he hasn’t backed his talk up about becoming a great player I respected him for complaining about playing behind new comers Tyler Herro,Kris Dunn,and Duncan Robinson. Waiters’s frustration was more with Herro getting more minutes and thinking he is better. I believe him in a game to 10 I’d pick Waiters in a one on one against Herro.
Call Dion Waiters uncoachable,lazy,or overweight but one thing he does not lack is aggressiveness on the court. Dion Waiters will willingly take any defender off the dribble in a crucial situation and that is what the Lakers need, Dion Waiters has the Kyrie Irving like skill-set which would compliment LeBron James. In a sense everyone always wanted to watch Kobe Bryant and LeBron James play together because they would possibly 4-Peat if they had ever played together. Dion Waiters has a scorer’s mentality, he can create separation and shoot jumpers from all over the floor and can blow by defenders for lay-ins and floaters. I’ve cringed at watching Danny Green in isolation situations, it’s like a turnover waiting to happen. I can watch Danny shoot spot up 3’s from all over the court but not being a primary ball handler which is what he is forced into with the shot clock winding down for the Lakers at times this season.
I feel comfortable watching Dion Waiters dribble the ball for over 7-8 seconds and be able to dribble through ball pressure due to his ball handling ability, he has averaged upwards of 4 assists in his career so he can also serve as the play-maker the Lakers coveted at the Trade Deadline. The game of basketball is mental, you can have all the talent in the world but if you have no heart or guts you are doomed. Dion Waiters is not afraid to come down the floor repeatedly and shoot jumpers off the dribble if he feels he has a rhythm, with LeBron James or Anthony Davis off the floor the Lakers need a scoring wing who can create offense for themselves. Leaving that task in the hands of Rajon Rondo to orchestrate shots while LeBron or Davis is off the floor at this point in Rajon Rondo’s Career wouldn’t be the best idea, then again who knows Rondo might be saving his best stuff for the Playoffs this season.
To conclude Dion Waiters has had a roller-coaster of a Career but maybe signing with the Lakers will steer his Career in the right direction. Everyone is mentioning how it is ultimately up to LeBron James if Dion Waiters gets signed, we haven’t heard anything about LeBron James being disgruntled on the Lakers since he signed his 4-year deal which leads me to think he is on good terms with Rob Pelinka and has say in what decisions should be made in the locker room. I’ve heard rumors about JR Smith as well but JR Smith is not a shot creator like Dion Waiters, JR Smith needs to be set up so he can score at this point in his career. Dion Waiters can actually tell all 4 Lakers on the court “Clear out I got this” in the Playoffs and LeBron and Davis being fine with it, hopefully the Lakers sign him, till next time.
D-NBA 