Lakers training camp invitees Joe Crawford and Brandon Heath will be joined by a familiar face when D-Fenders training camp opens later this month–Dwayne Mitchell. Today the D-Fenders front office acquired Mitchell in exchange for forward Patrick Sanders.
Mitchell spent the summer playing for the Lakers entry to the Vegas Summer Pro League, averaging 6.7 points on .619 shooting, 1.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.83 steals in 15.0 minutes over six games.
Dwayne struggled to find his way during Lakers training camp as he was injured early and never found his way amid a crowded backcourt.
Before playing for the Lakers, the 6’5” 220-pound guard out of Louisiana Lafayette played for the D-League’s Iowa Energy, where he averaged over 20 points and 6 rebounds per game on his way to earning a spot on the D-League All-Star team.
Click here to learn more about Mitchell or visit D-Fenders.com.
The Lakers recalled Coby Karl from the D-Fenders today.
Coby averaged 18.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 38.5 minutes over the 10 games he played in the D-League. Karl was also bombing at a 43.5% clip from behind the arc.
Coby will be available for tomorrow’s holiday tilt against the Suns.
Click here to read the full press release
The Lakers meet up with AI, Melo, and the rest of the Denver Nuggets tonight at STAPLES Center (7:30, TNT).
The Nuggets have lost their last two games (at Houston, vs. Indiana), but still sport a 9-6 record that puts them just ahead of the Lakers in the Western Conference playoff race. Denver finished as the 6th seed last season, while the Lakers were the 7th seed.
The Nuggets are all kinds of banged up, but could get oft-injured forward Kenyon Martin back tonight. Former Laker Chucky Atkins has been ruled out of the game with a severe groin strain, as have big men Nene & Steven Hunter.
The Nuggets still have Marcus Camby–last year’s Defensive Player of the Year–manning the paint. The Bynum/Camby matchup should be fun to watch when the Lakers have the ball. Bynum continues to blossom, but Camby is averaging 3.5 blocks and close to 15 rebounds a game.
After being the bright spot of the team in the early going, the Lakers reserves have struggled to find their way after the trade to acquire Trevor Ariza and Drew moving to the first unit in Kwame Brown’s absence. It raises the question of “Who Starts?”
Continue reading ‘Lakers Today: 11/29/07′
In a somewhat expected move, Coby Karl has been sent to the Lakers Developmental League affiliate, the Los Angeles D-Fenders.
Karl has played sparingly this season, appearing in only two games.
Coby’s first appearance for the D-Fenders will be this Thursday against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. Game time is 3:30pm at STAPLES Center. Your ticket for Thursday’s Lakers-Nuggets game is also good for a lower level seat for the D-Fenders game that day.
Here’s the full press release:
The Los Angeles Lakers have assigned guard Coby Karl to the Los Angeles D-Fenders of the NBA Development League, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.
Karl was signed by the Lakers as a free agent on July 30, 2007. He has appeared in two games this season, averaging 1.0 points and 1.0 assists in 2.0 minutes.
The 6’5” guard from Boise State averaged 14.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists as a senior and was named First Team All-WAC. Karl’s 1,698 career points ranks third on Boise State’s all-time scoring list while leaving Boise State as the all-time leader in games played (127) and three-pointers made (266).
The Lakers D-League team, the Los Angeles D-Fenders, open up their season tomorrow at 2:30 against the Utah Flash.
The D-Fenders recently set their opening day roster of 10 by cutting former UCLA guard Brian Morrison and Laker training camp invitee Andre Patterson. But that roster might get a couple additions in the form of some Lakers rookies.
D-League rules dictate that first and second year players on NBA rosters are eligible to be sent to their team’s D-League affiliates. This means that of the current Lakers, Jordan Farmar, Javaris Crittenton, and Coby Karl are eligible for assignment.
Farmar spent time with the D-Fenders last season when he wasn’t getting much playing time in the Lakers rotation. Farmar ended the season as the Lakers starting point guard and has solidified himself as a key backup to Derek Fisher. Jordan is currently averaging more than 10 points in 21 minutes per game and doesn’t look to be destined for anything less than the starting point guard spot spot on the Sophmore team at All-Star Weekend.
Crittenton and Karl are a different matter. Both have played sparingly in the Lakers first 12 games and could benefit from the extra playing time.
Continue reading ‘D-Fender Possibilities’
