A few days ago, the Los Angeles Lakers signed guard Dion Waiters to bolster their backcourt heading into the stretch run of the 2019-20 NBA season.
He did not play in their 113-103 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday, and it appears he may not make his Lakers debut for a little while.
Frank Vogel said “it’s probably going to be a few games” before Dion Waiters makes his debut. He has not played most of the season, unlike Markieff Morris, so Lakers are still trying to get him up to speed.
— Bill Oram (@billoram) March 7, 2020
Waiters was once the fourth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, but has been a bit of a disappointment since then. He’s had his moments of being a spark plug, but he’s also been a headcase at times.
Most notably, he was suspended not once, not twice, but three times this season by the Miami Heat. Tired of his antics, they finally traded him to the Memphis Grizzlies in the deal that brought Andre Iguodala to South Florida.
Due to all the suspensions, Waiters has played in only three games this season. He last appeared in an NBA game on Jan. 28.
It sounds reasonable that the Lakers want to be cautious with Waiters. They not only need to get him up to speed with their offensive and defensive schemes, but they also need to make sure he’s in shape.
