On Sunday, the Los Angeles Lakers waived Jordan Goodwin (Althoff Catholic) to make room for Marcus Smart.
On Tuesday, the Phoenix Suns claimed the 26-year-old off free agency waivers.
This past season, Goodwin proved to be a solid contributor off the bench in his role with the Lakers.
He played in just 29 games which included five starts. He averaged 5.6 points on shooting splits of .438/.382/.818 with 3.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists, a steal, 0.4 blocks, and 0.9 steals in 18.7 minutes per game. He had an offensive rebound in 25 of his 29 games including at least one during a 12-game span from February 29 through March 26.
Lakers star LeBron James went out in March so Goodwin stepped in and saw increased minutes on the court. During the five game starting span, the Centreville native averaged 8.6 points on 43.6 percent shooting with 4.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.8 steals, and 1.2 blocks in 30.4 minutes per game. He also shot 38.9 percent on 3.6 3-point attempts per game.
Phoenix is not a completely new team for the 2017 Althoff grad. He played 40 games for the Suns during the 2023-24 season before traded to the Memphis Grizzlies in a 3-team trade in February 2024. Also in the trade was Keita Bates-Diop (University).
During those 40 games, Goodwin averaged just five points, 2.9 rebounds, and two assists in 14 minutes per game. His shooting splits were .389/.288/.862.
Goodwin saw several career-bests last season and looks to build on that with Phoenix. Playing for another playoff contending team should be beneficial as well.
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