Los Angeles Lakers pay nearly $8 million to retain backup centre Jordan Hill – NBA News
The Los Angeles Lakers have agreed to a new contract with backup centre Jordan Hill, as confirmed by his agent and reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.
The news comes as no surprise, as it had been expected that the Lakers would keep Hill as a backup to their starting centre, after being impressed by him in the previous season.
“Jordan Hill has reached agreement on a two-year, nearly $8 million deal with the Lakers, his agent Kevin Bradbury tells Y! Sports,” reported Wojnarowski.
Hill played 32 games for Houston last season where he averaged 5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. He was traded to the Lakers near the end of the season and played only 7 games for them. However, the 7 games were enough for him
to make an impression on the Lakers team management. He averaged 4.7 points and 4.4 rebounds in those 7 games. but he proved his worth in the 2012 NBA playoffs, where he averaged 4.8 points and 6.3 rebounds in the 12 postseason Lakers games, playing 18.1 minutes
on average in the playoffs.
Hill played beyond his role and contributed in the overall success of the team, while holding his fort down and allowing Andrew Bynum to take rest during games. The Lakers were expected to re-sign him, but the deal was delayed
as the Lakers first made a move to acquire Steve Nash, and then were engaged in trade talks with the Orlando Magic for All Star Centre Dwight Howard.
“Jordan was excited about the fact that Steve Nash decided to join the Lakers and the prospect of winning a championship in LA,” said Hill’s agent Kevin Bradbury.
Hill will be taking in a little less than $8 million over the course of his contract, which is a generous salary for a back up player. Plus, he will get to play on a team that is a strong title contender for next season, allowing
him the possibility of winning a championship ring along the way as well.
It now remains to be seen what kind of performance Hill puts up for the Lakers next season, when he plays the full season for them and is given the responsibility of stepping on for Bynum.
Tags: