NBA: 4 offseason moves paying early dividends in 2018-19

JaVale McGee, Los Angeles Lakers

On the Golden State Warriors, JaVale McGee felt like a mere joker in the deck. In a select few games, he had a meaningful role to play; in most, he was more of a novelty, never called upon to do too much.

In his first 19 games with the Lakers, he has proven himself to be much more than just a spare card. After starting in just 29 games over the last three seasons, he’s started every game this year and flashed a surprisingly polished skill set on both ends of the floor.

He’s currently second in the league for blocked shots at 2.8 per game, and he’s been the anchor of a top-ten Lakers defense. At times their young wings look lost defensively, but McGee has done an admirable job of mopping up their mistakes as they find their feet.

Offensively, he has played his role to perfection. It’s well known that McGee became sick of appearing on Shaqtin’ a Fool, but he’s finally made changes to his game to avoid the bloopers that regularly got him there.

He’s learned to play within himself, and by not trying to do too much he’s doing more than ever before in his career. He’s averaging a career-high 13.2 points per game, and despite more than doubling his shot attempts from last season (9.2 per game, up from 3.4) he’s shooting 63.4 percent from the field.

McGee’s workload should drop with Tyson Chandler now in Hollywood, but he’s shown more than enough to remain the starter for this season, and potentially beyond. The Lakers are still learning to play with LeBron, but McGee’s stellar start is helping them to bridge the gap in the meantime.