NBA Free Agency Preview: 10 Lesser Talked About Names

Ed Davis

Ed Davis (5.0 nERD) was one of the few bright spots for the lowly Lakers this year. Despite playing just 23.3 minutes, the 6'10" big contributed 8.3 points and 7.6 rebounds (2.9 offensive) per game. Davis also led the Lakers with 1.2 swats a night and a Defensive Rating of 107.

Davis gets the job done on both ends of the floor, and that's why his efficiency numbers are so good. The power forward-center combo (remember, on a terrible team) finished with a PER of 20.0 as well as 6.3 Win Shares, .164 Win Shares per 48 and a Value over Replacement Player of 2.3. Every single one of those numbers was first on the team.

That's a big reason why the Lakers would like to re-sign Davis even after he opted out of the final year of his contract. To keep him around, however, Los Angeles will have to pay Davis somewhere between $7 and $10 million per year. That decision, on the Lakers' part could be largely influenced by the signing of an Aldridge or Love.