Lakers Announce Signing of Luka Doncic's Former Mavericks Teammate

Adding to their center depth on Monday, the Lakers announced they had signed 7-foot big man Kylor Kelley. While the terms of the deal were not announced, it is likely in Exhibit 10 contract, which will give Kelley the opportunity to compete for a roster spot in training camp.

"The Los Angeles Lakers have signed center Kylor Kelley," the team announced on Monday. "Kelley (7'0", 230) appeared in 11 NBA games (two starts) last season with the New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks, averaging 3.1 points and 3.5 rebounds in 11.5 minutes."

Kylor Kelley has Brief History With Lakers, Luka Doncic

As the Lakers noted, Kelley spent time with the Mavericks last season. While he and Doncic never appeared in a game together, they were teammates for about one week. Kelley signed with Dallas on Jan. 26 before Doncic was traded to LA on Feb. 1.

Kelley is also not new to the Lakers organization. He spent time with their G League affiliate (South Bay Lakers) last season — which the team detailed in its announcement.

"With the South Bay Lakers, the 27-year-old appeared in 32 games (27 starts) and averaged 11.5 points on a career-high 68.2 percent shooting from the field, 7.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 2.4 blocks in 26.7 minutes," the Lakers wrote. "Kelley was named to the 2024 NBA G League All-Defensive Team after leading the league in blocks per game."

Exhibit 10 Contracts Can Produce NBA Rotation Players

While Kelley is seemingly a long shot to make LA's roster — as Ayton, Hayes and Koloko all sit ahead of him on the center depth chart, there are recent NBA examples where training camp signings turned into productive rotation players. One at the center position is OKC Thunder champion Isaiah Hartenstein.

Signing a training camp deal with the LA Clippers in 2021 (via former ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski ), Hartenstein made the team out of camp before establishing himself as one of the most productive reserve centers in basketball. He then earned himself a $16 million contract with the New York Knicks before landing an $87 million deal in OKC — where he became an NBA champion.

While the odds are against Kelley to have a Hartenstein-like career, there is a blueprint to follow for Exhibit 10 signings who want to stick in the league.