5 Teams that could use Andrew Bynum

Inactive since March 2014, former Lakers center and an integral piece of their back-to-back championship run without Shaq, Andrew Bynum has scheduled workouts with a number of teams in an attempt to stage a return to pro competition.

Ever since Shams Charania broke the news a couple of days ago, there have been whispers around the league as to what kind of form the 30-year-old currently is in.

A workout video of him posted recently displays him knocking down long-range shot. Although he is visibly past his physical and athletic prime, there is always a chance that he could fill a role as a third- or even second-string center for a team in need of decent backups.

Bynum will be, by default, a low-risk, high-reward signing if at all he is even 50% of the player he was at his peak when he landed All-NBA and All-Star consideration in the year 2012 before being traded away by the Lakers in their last attempt at forming a super team.

Here is a look at 5 teams that should consider using Andrew Bynum:

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#1 Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers are teeming with above-average to elite talent at the playmaking and perimeter roles. But despite drafting Mo Wagner and signing back-to-back champion JaVale McGee from the Warriors, it is clear that the Lakers are still at least a man short in their center rotation.

Ivica Zubac has been unable to find his feet in two below-.500 seasons for the Lakers which have afforded him enough room to display his utility to the team. As things stand, LeBron James looks primed to play a lot of minutes at the 5 position in a small-ball lineup.

The King has never been comfortable in an off-ball role, though, and it seems inevitable that he will only be sparingly used at the 5 spot. This opens up a window for Bynum to place himself firmly within the team's plans. If his workouts allow him to actually showcase his newfound range in front of the team management, he might have a shot at making the roster.

#2 Golden State Warriors

2018 NBA Finals - Game Two

With Pachulia's and McGee's departures, David West's retirement, Damian Jones' struggles and DeMarcus Cousins' injury troubles, the Warriors find themselves thin on rotation-quality big men at the start of this season.

It takes some mental gymnastics to see how an out-of-shape, past-prime player whose last quality NBA game time was over 6 seasons ago will contribute to a championship calibre roster, but such is the scarcity of quality backups across the league who command a reasonable salary that Bynum stands a chance just because of being available at a cut-price rate.

#3 Atlanta Hawks

Chicago Bulls v Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks easily boast of the worst roster in basketball right now. With barely a couple of starter-quality players across the roster (Kent Bazemore and Taurean Prince are the only ones that spring to mind), they seem rooted to the bottom of the Eastern Conference for the foreseeable future.

Dewayne Dedmon, their projected starter at the center position, is currently injured and will miss all of the training camp given the timeline of his ankle problem recovery. This means John Collins and Miles Plumlee are the only players on their roster capable of logging minutes at the 5 position right now.

A good workout with the Hawks could do wonders to Bynum's confidence, and perhaps even land him a veteran's minimum contract for the season.

#4 Dallas Mavericks

San Antonio Spurs v Dallas Mavericks

At one point, Bynum was in a position to sign with the Mavs as a free agent, before he opted to sign with the Cavaliers instead. 5 years on, the Mavs are still in a state of flux at the center position and could use some depth on their frontcourt.

Maxi Kleber, Dwight Powell and Nowitzki could all theoretically serve as the backup center to DeAndre Jordan, who finally signed with the Mavericks 3 years after spurning their offer at the final juncture. But Kleber and Powell looked way out of their league last season whenever they got game time against even league-average centers - especially on the defensive end.

Bynum may indeed be able to cobble together a workout of sorts to beat the competition he faces here.

#5 Portland Trail Blazers

New Orleans Pelicans v Portland Trail Blazers - Game One

The Blazers only have one recognized center on their roster - Jusuf Nurkic. Meyers Leonard and Zach Collins are primarily power forwards who've faced difficulties in filling the 5 position in the past couple of seasons, as the squad looks thin on elite depth overall.

Bynum still has the size and verticality to play in the NBA, judging from what we saw in the little footage that has been released of him working out. As a roll man alongside the likes of Lillard, McCollum and Seth Curry, he could still wreak havoc on the offensive end by bullying off the smaller centers today.

It might take much more of an adjustment for him on the defensive end, for he was never the fastest player back in transition and is best used in a system that controls the game's pace at lower than the league average today