Report: Los Angeles Lakers waive sharpshooter Matt Ryan

The Athletic’s Shams Charania has reported that the Los Angeles Lakers waived sharpshooter Matt Ryan after winning 128-109 over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.

The decision to waive him drew questions about their plan with his now-vacant spot on the roster. Sam Quinn of CBS Sports said that waiving Ryan would lead to the Lakers making an unbalanced trade in which they could bring in two players while only sending out one.

There have been rumors that Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook would join the Lakers via trade and fill Ryan’s spot. Davis averaged 26.3 points, 12.7 points, 2.6 assists, 1.5 steals, and 2.3 blocks this season.

“We’ve got Davis here, who I don’t think has looked the same for a couple years, certainly not close to bubble Davis [2020]. That’s the last time we saw vintage 2018 [New Orleans], Pelicans-level Davis,” Bill Simmons of The Ringer said of Davis on his podcast last month.

Ryan went undrafted out of college in the 2020 NBA Draft, sitting out the entire 2020–21 season. He briefly played for the Boston Celtics last season and eventually signed with the Lakers on a non-guaranteed deal before the start of training camp. Ryan joined to cover the three-point shooting area, the Lakers’ major weakness this season.

Throughout his time with the Lakers, Ryan made some of the biggest shots of the season. During a game against the New Orleans Pelicans, he scored a three-pointer, leading the Lakers to a victory after forcing the game into overtime. He also got two minutes of playing time at the end of last Wednesday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers, which the Lakers won 128-109.

While having a limited role, Ryan played 12 games for the Lakers this season, with a total of 129 minutes, and shot 38.2 percent from three-point range.