The Audition Period: G League Call-Ups
The final option, at least for now, could be to call up and evaluate any rising G League talent, with preference likely going to LA’s affiliate, the South Bay Lakers.
Two developing guards, Kobe Bufkin and RJ Davis, are lighting the league up this season. Bufkin remains the G’s regular-season scoring leader with 27.7 points per game. And Davis earned Player of the Week honors after averaging 32 points, six rebounds and eight assists in three of South Bay’s last four games.
The pair impressed again this morning despite a loss to the Capital City Go-Go. Bufkin had a team-high 29 points on 5/13 shooting (3/6 3PT), along with three rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block. Davis, meanwhile, recorded 20 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and a steal. It’s worth noting, however, that both players wound up in foul trouble (Bufkin with four, Davis three), and that Davis’s seven assists came in spite of six turnovers.
Still, it wouldn’t hurt for the Lakers to bring in either player (in Bufkin’s case, for a second stint) and see how he could help in the short term. It may not lead to a full-time opportunity, but the Lakers are better off giving those chances than letting the open spot go to waste.
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