The Los Angeles Lakers have acquired the services of rookie big man Tarik Black to fill up the big void in the middle.
Black was cut by the Houston Rockets last December 26 to make room for the arrival of Josh Smith. Black had averages of 4.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in 25 games for the Rockets this season, 12 of which he was a starter.
Black's arrival however came at a price as well as the Lakers had to waive Xavier Henry to make room in the Lakers lineup.
Well what basketball player doesn't grow up wishing to play for a historic organization like the @Lakers Thank you for the opportunity LA!!!
— Tarik Black (@TarikBlack25) December 28, 2014
Black went undrafted and is seen as a good fit for the defensive-sets of head coach Byron Scott. His entry comes at a trying time as the Lakers continue to rebuild after a forgettable 2013-14 season. Black is expected to provide quality minutes behind present Laker big men, Jordan Hill and Ed Davis. "He's a big, physical string kid who's very intelligent and we'd love to see him get here as quick as possible so we can get him in action on the practice court and then we'll go from there," coach Byron Scott said. "From some of our reports about him he's very active on the defensive end and a great communicator on the defensive end and those are two things we need from our bigs. We'll see how he translates that from Houston to here." As for Xavier Henry who showed promise for the Lakers last year, his departure seems to be a surprising one. Playing only nine games this season, Henry suffered a ruptured left Achilles Tendon during practice last November which has put him on the sidelines and most probably the entire season.
Lakers did not have an open roster spot for Tarik Black but created one by simultaneously waiving Xavier Henry — Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) December 28, 2014
Black is expected to suit up for the Lakers this Tuesday when the team goes up against the hosting Denver Nuggets.
