Last season, the Los Angeles Lakers were in desperate need of serviceable wings and forwards, so they took a flyer on Wenyen Gabriel, a 6-foot-9 man who had played 58 games total dating to the 2019-20 campaign.
Gabriel was undrafted and had bounced around the league playing for five teams. But he started to find a home with the Purple and Gold.
This season, he kept his place in the rotation for much of the campaign. Although he’s lacking in skills and strength, he made up for it in the effort department, and he made an important contribution.
Gabriel's regular season stats (in 15.1 minutes a game)
5.5 points
4.2 rebounds
59.6 percent field-goal shooting
27.8 percent 3-point shooting
61.9 percent free-throw shooting
Takeaways
Gabriel is a classic role player who gives it all he has and can outwork players who are a little more gifted than him. He does a good job of hitting the boards, particularly the offensive boards, and he’s effective at flashing into the middle and scoring easy baskets in the paint off passes.
Since he only weighs about 205 pounds, he has some trouble finishing in traffic, and he also has trouble guarding centers. Still, head coach Darvin Ham insisted on using Gabriel at the 5 most of the time rather than at the 4, where he isn’t nearly as undersized.
During the playoffs, Gabriel’s playing time became scarce as Ham increasingly went with LeBron James as Anthony Davis’ backup at center.
The 26-year-old could increase his value moving forward by developing a dependable 3-point shot, although it may be too much to expect him to do so in one offseason.
He will be a free agent this summer, and it may not be a bad idea for the Lakers to keep him on a minimum contract.
Final grade: B-minus/B
