Lakers Add former All-Star Drummond for Playoff Push

The defending world champion Los Angeles Lakers have had a rough go around with injury issues in 2021, much to be expected due to the quick turnaround and shortened offseason following the team's title run back in October. With just 72 days in-between seasons, the shortest offseason in the history of the four major sports in the United States, it's no surprise that many of the league's best players have fallen victim to the injury bug at one point or another. And no team has felt that wrath worse than the defending champs themselves. As the NBA trade deadline came and went on Thursday without the Lakers making any noise, the team was fortunate enough to strike gold elsewhere on the free-agent market. 

With teams jockeying for position in the NBA arms race, the Lakers, standing at a record of 30-17, received some much needed help with the acquisition of All-Star center Andre Drummond just in time for their upcoming playoff push. Acquired on Sunday after clearing waivers just days after the trade deadline, Drummond spent nearly eight seasons in Detroit where he was named to an All-Star team twice, before being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers last season. Drummond's services became available after his contract was bought out by the Cavs who decided to sit the former 9th overall pick in favor of devoting more playing time to the younger Jarrett Allen as Cleveland enters yet another rebuild. But like the saying goes: one team's trash is another team's treasure. In need of another interior presence to ease the load off of last year's 6th Man of the Year in Montrezl Harrell and 10-day contract recipient Damian Jones who have both been summoned to fill the void left by Marc Gasol who had missed nine games while battling COVID issues, Drummond will be called upon to start at center and should be able to contribute right away. Especially in the absence of superstars LeBron James (high ankle sprain) and Anthony Davis (right calf injury), who have missed 5 and 19 games, respectively. Since Davis' absence on February 14, the team has been on somewhat of a freefall, dropping 10 of 19 games and falling from the Western Conference's top seed to the fourth seed. With James out for at least another two to three weeks and no timetable set just yet for Davis' return, the Lakers need help outside of the usual suspects i.e. Kyle Kuzma and Dennis Schroeder and they need it now to stay afloat in the extremely competitive Western Conference. 

Having sat out since February 12, Drummond will need to get his feet back underneath him after averaging 17.5 points, 13.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 25 starts before his benching and ultimately his release from the Cavs. Drummond has led the league in rebounds on four separate occasions and has finished in the top 2 for seven straight seasons, while also leading all centers in steals over the past 4 seasons. The former UCONN product also does a superior job on the offensive boards, having led the league in offensive rebounds in each of the last 7 seasons. Another strong point of his is second-chance points which Drummond has led the league in five times. As for this season, although a small sample size, Drummond is second in the league in rebounds per game, behind only Atlanta's Clint Capela, and third in offensive boards per game with 4.0. A stat the Lakers and head coach Frank Vogel will surely welcome with open arms as they currently rank 9th in the league in rebounding, but just 17th in offensive rebounds. With a healthy LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the lineup and the addition of Drummond, the Lakers should see their chances of defending their NBA title catapult back to the top. With the 7th-highest career rebounding average in NBA history (13.5), the newest Laker will make his team debut with the purple and gold tonight at 7pm when they take on the (29-17) Milwaukee Bucks at Staples Center in L.A. 

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49ers cap Offseason flurry by Trading up to No. 3 spot in April's Draft

One week of NFL free-agency in the books and the San Francisco 49ers have checked off the list of many of their top priorities this offseason. Of the many moves the franchise has made thus far, it was the deal to bring back fullback Kyle Juszczyk that kicked things off for general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan. Striking a deal to bring back the versatile Juszczyk, Shanahan's offensive system has allowed the 5-time Pro Bowl fullback to flourish whether he's run-blocking or receiving. Playing a position that has become somewhat of a dying breed in today's NFL, Juszczyk remains one of the 49ers' most lethal weapons in San Francisco's run-heavy scheme, which has helped him enjoy Pro Bowl campaigns in each of his previous four seasons as a 49er. Thus 49ers brass made it a priority of theirs to retain Juice for another five-years, inking him to a $27 Million contract. The front-office also made noise on defense, bringing in a new face in defensive-end Samson Ebukam (two-year deal), formerly of the rival L.A. Rams, while also seeing the return of multiple key players. 

Cornerbacks Jason Verrett (one-year), Dontae Johnson (one-year), Emmanuel Moseley (two-years) and K'Waun Williams (one-year) all returned to the Bay Area for another go around in San Francisco's secondary, as did safety Jaquiski Tartt (one-year). Bolstering the defensive-line, D.J. Jones and Jordan Willis each landed one-year deals to return to the squad as well. As for the biggest move of them all, the duo of Lynch & Shanahan made the earth-shattering deal that made All-Pro tackle Trent Williams the most wealthiest man to ever play the position, as the two sides agreed to a six-year, $138.6 Million pact, the highest-paid contract to an offensive-lineman ever. After making his 8th career Pro Bowl appearance in 2020, the former first round pick with Washington landed himself a huge payday after sitting out all of 2019 due to health concerns and a tiff with team doctors which ultimately led to his trade request out of the nation's capital. Other than the hefty payday, Williams' familiarity in Shanahan's system dating back to their time spent in Washington together, made returning to San Francisco an easy decision for the 32-year old. 

Another new face for the Niners but one Shanahan is also familiar with is center and Cal Berkeley alum Alex Mack who signed a 3-year deal after playing the last five seasons in Atlanta, including a season with Kyle Shanahan as the Falcons' offensive-coordinator in 2016, as well as Shanahan's only season with Cleveland in 2014. But as busy as the 49ers front-office was in free agency, the team also dropped a bombshell in relation to next month's Draft. Originally positioned at the No. 12 slot, the duo of Lynch & Shanahan dealt that pick along with the compensatory third-round pick they acquired with Robert Saleh heading to the Jets, as well as their first-round picks in both 2022 and 2023 to the Dolphins for Miami's No. 3 overall selection. The blockbuster deal was the talk of the town in the football world on Friday and will have "massive ramifications" as ESPN's Adam Schefter put it. With the pick almost certain to be spent on a quarterback, things will now shift to a waiting game in terms of which young quarterback the 49ers brain trust will call upon to be their signal-caller of the future. Rumors have swirled virtually all offseason long with whispers of a possible trade for Jets QB Sam Darnold or Houston's Deshaun Watson to San Francisco, but all signs are pointing to Jimmy Garoppolo being under center for the 49ers, at least for 2021 as GM John Lynch made sure to call Garoppolo shortly after news broke of the big trade, to ensure him that he remains in the team's plans as the projected starter for the upcoming season and will now be asked to tutor his future replacement. 

As Clemson's Trevor Lawrence and BYU's Zach Wilson are practically shoo-ins to be selected with the first and second overall picks by the Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets, respectively, the 49ers will likely nab one of the following: Justin Fields out of Ohio State, Trey Lance of North Dakota State, or Alabama's Mac Jones. San Francisco will also make selections with the 43rd, 102nd, 117th, 155th, 172nd, 180th, 194th and 230th overall picks. 

Other notable free-agent signings include former Cardinals receiver and return specialist Trent Sherfield, former Colts safety Tavon Wilson and former Panthers defensive-tackle Zach Kerr. 

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