Jordan Goodwin is playing so well that put the Los Angeles Lakers in a tough spot.
As a player on a two-way contract, Goodwin has only five games of eligibility left to be on the Lakers active roster following their 125-109 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Monday, March 18.
“It’s very complicated because he’s really earned the trust of the coaching staff,” Redick told reporters after Goodwin’s huge game against the Spurs. “But this is unfortunately the nature of the two-way contracts and having a full roster. So again, it’s something, similar to Trey (Jemison), we’re just gonna manage. I think with guys being out, we can’t really afford to have him out of the rotation right now and then we’ll see as we get healthy.”
Goodwin scored 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting in a spot start. He rounded up his solid performance with four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. The Lakers outscored the Spurs by nine during Goodwin’s 33-minute court time.
With the Lakers’ rash of injuries, Redick has started Goodwin in the last three games. The two-way player responded by averaging 9.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.3 blocks in 31.3 minutes. He is also shooting 50% overall and 41.7% from 3-point line.
With the Lakers’ roster full, they have to waive a player to convert Goodwin’s current two-way deal into a standard contract for him to be eligible in the playoffs. They have until the final day of the regular season to make the decision.
Lakers Coaching Staff High on Jordan Goodwin
The Lakers signed Goodwin to a two-way contract on Feb. 7 after he averaged 9.7 points on 38.5% 3-point shooting, 4.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steal in three games with the South Bay Lakers in the G League this season.
Goodwin is a rugged defender but the biggest knock on his game was his lack of outside shot. He shot 30.8% from the 3-point range in 121 NBA games before he signed with the Lakers.
But Goodwin has worked on his shooting and has improved tremendously to command the Lakers’ attention.
Redick and his coaching staff liked what they saw in Goodwin during the training camp. But a hamstring injury sidelined him. But once he recovered, the Lakers slowly brought him in via their G League affiliate.
Redick revealed he and his coaching staff fought for Goodwin’s two-way contract with the Lakers’ standard roster full.
“It would’ve happened sooner had he not hurt his hamstring,” Redick said after their loss to the Denver Nuggets last week.
Bradley Beal’s Protege
Goodwin was Bradley Beal’s protege and a former teammate in Washington and Phoenix. They became good friends when Goodwin played for Beal’s AAU basketball team he coached in St. Louis.
After going undrafted in 2021, the 6-foot-4 Goodwin joined the Washington Wizards Summer League team and eventually joined their G League team after getting waived. Then he went from a 10-day contract to a two-way deal until earning a multi-year deal to join Beal with the Wizards.
After his first full season with the Wizards, averaging 6.6 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists, he was included in the Beal trade to the Suns. In 40 games as a reserve for the Suns last season, Goodwin averaged 5.0 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 14 minutes.
Goodwin parted ways with Beal at the February trade deadline when the Suns traded him to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team trade with the Memphis Grizzlies for Royce O’Neale.
“I’ve known J Good since he was a teenager,” Beal told reporters when Goodwin was traded. “It is definitely surreal in some ways, but at the same time, we’ve talked about this in DC. No matter what man, if you’re here, anywhere else like somebody wants you, you go prove yourself [and] continue to be yourself. I’m excited for a new opportunity for him.
It definitely sucks. I wish he was still here, but business is business. He understands it, I understand it and he’s off to a better place and hopefully, he can land on his feet and be ready when his name is called.”
