Beasley latest veteran to join LeBron’s Lakers
LOS ANGELES — Michael Beasley thinks the basketball world is foolish to assume the Los Angeles Lakers’ revamped locker-room will be combustible before the fuse is even lit.
The Lakers announced their signing of Beasley to a one-year contract Monday, adding the versatile forward to their new core of veterans around LeBron James.
Beasley, Rajon Rondo, Lance Stephenson and JaVale McGee have all joined Los Angeles this month in a slate of provocative off-season signings to supplement its talented youngsters and James, who started the parade to the West Coast when he left Cleveland for the 16-time NBA champions in free agency.
All four of these well-known, well-travelled veterans around James have varying degrees of colorful histories in their previous NBA stops, prompting widespread speculation in the media and around the league about how coach Luke Walton will manage his roster. They’ve already attracted an immediate online nickname — “The Meme Team” — while other pundits have compared them to a basketball Suicide Squad, referring to the recent DC Comics film about a misfit team of antiheroes.
Beasley thinks the entire discussion is summertime NBA nonsense. “For there to be a narrative [about problems with] personalities in this room is judgment enough for me, and I just don’t want to be a part of it,” Beasley said.
Heading into his 11th NBA season with his seventh franchise, Beasley knows something about locker room chemistry and the importance of professionalism. He was James’ teammate with the Miami Heat during the 2013-14 season, when they reached the NBA final, and he already has friendships with Rondo, Stephenson and McGee.
Beasley hasn’t become the superstar many expected when he was the No. 2 pick by Miami in the 2008 draft, but he has fashioned a solid NBA career. He said he couldn’t have lasted this long in the league if he didn’t get along with his teammates and work toward team goals — and he feels the same about Rondo, Stephenson and McGee, who have all had enduring careers.