As expected, Lakers to sign Stanley Johnson for rest of season

Stanley Johnson played his way into being invaluable to the Lakers. He averages 6.4 points and a couple of rebounds a game, but he’s doing so while being an efficient shooter (34.4% from 3), playing solid defense, and fitting in well next to LeBron James. The bottom line is that the Lakers outscore opponents by 5.5 points per 100 possessions when he is on the court and get outscored by 1.9 when he is on the bench.

As expected, the Lakers are signing him for the rest of this season, and they have a team option to bring him back next season, a story broken by Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Johnson came in at Christmas with the Lakers in desperation mode to fill out the roster as COVID and injuries hit. The Lakers traded Rajon Rondo in a three-team deal to open up a roster spot, one they had planned to use in a trade to bring someone else in, but Johnson’s play earned him that spot.

How well Johnson plays off Lebron and Russell Westbrook has been the key to his success in Los Angeles. Since he arrived, Johnson has been part of the Lakers’ most-used lineup (LeBron, Westbrook, Avery Bradley, Malik Monk and Johnson), a lineup with a +12.7 net rating.

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As expected, Lakers to sign Stanley Johnson for rest of season originally appeared on NBCSports.com