To make room to sign preseason darling Quincy Olivari to a two-way contract, Los Angeles Lakers opted to release center Colin Castleton. It didn’t take long for the big man to find a new home as Castleton signed a two-way contract with the Memphis Grizzlies.

The Lakers signed Castleton to a two-way contract in the summer of 2023 after he went undrafted. He appeared in 16 games for the Lakers last season in very limited minutes, but also spent a lot of time in the G League, where he showed his potential.

In 12 regular season games with the South Bay Lakers, Castleton averaged 14.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.0 steals on 53.8% shooting from the field. He was even better during the G League Showcase, where he averaged an outstanding 18.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 blocks on 60.1% shooting.

Castleton is a skilled big man with a solid all-around offensive game and good playmaking skills for his size along with solid rim protection on the other end of the floor, being an SEC All-Defensive Team selection in his last year in Florida.

With the Lakers bringing in Christian Koloko as another two-way player, and another frontcourt player in Armel Traore also a two-way player, Castleton became a little more expendable. they felt Koloko would soon be cleared by the NBA to resume his career after a blood clot problem.. Olivari’s play in the preseason finally forced the Lakers to find a way to keep the guard within the organization.

The Grizzlies recently converted another former Lakers two-way center to a standard contract with Jay Huff joining their roster, opening up the spot Castleton filled. Their first-round pick, Zach Edey, is the only other true center on the Grizzlies’ roster, as they prefer to pair a big body next to Jaren Jackson Jr.

Christian Koloko will begin the process of returning to play with the South Bay Lakers

Christian Koloko has been officially cleared by the NBA and head coach JJ Redick confirmed it His process to return to the NBA will begin in the G League with the South Bay Lakers.

This makes sense as it will give Koloko a chance to slowly improve and get into game shape while also regaining his feel on the basketball court. The big man appeared in 58 games as a rookie with the Toronto Raptors in 2023 before being shut down due to that blood clot issue.

He had great potential coming out of college, particularly on the defensive end. He was the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and the Pac-12 Most Improved Player in his final college season, where he averaged 12.6 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.8 blocks.

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