Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
When the Los Angeles Lakers acquired Dwight Howard in the blockbuster trade in August one of the first thoughts that came to my mind is that Earl Clark could be a potential steal in this trade.
The Lakers are a team that has desperately needed athleticism and youth and Clark provided that. Also the Lakers have gotten lucky in recent years with players who were thought of as afterthoughts in trades and proved to be essential to title runs. All the great teams in this league have guys that can play certain roles and provide energy for a period of time.
Clark has always been a talented player form his days at the University of Louisville but he got caught up on playing on bad teams and being in bad situations. A lot of people don’t understand that not every lottery pick is going to make it with the team that selects them. Unfortunately Clark got labeled as a bust even though he never got a real opportunity to play any significant minutes.
On this Lakers team Clark has been forced into action and has performed very well as of late. He has provided energy and passion for a team that lacked it. Also Clark is a talented athletic forward that this team has desperately needed and has been able to fit into the offense without many problems.
It is only fitting that a guy who was getting DNP’s earlier in the season maybe the guy who can help save the Lakers season. A year ago during the lockout Clark was playing in China and now he is a main contributor on a team fighting for its season. It is good to see a player who was probably a year away from being overseas to now being able to showcase his talents and help a team that desperately needs it.
