EL SEGUNDO -- No one appreciates being a Laker more than forward/guard Jason Kapono.
"This is like a dream come true for me—wait, this IS a dream come true for me," said the former UCLA star who signed with his hometown team as a free agent on Dec. 9. "When it happened, it really took me a while to believe that I was going to be playing with Kobe (Bryant) and Pau (Gasol) and the rest of the guys. And it's a great time for me to come back here. My wife, Ashley, just gave birth to our twin daughters (Campbell and Isla) and it gives my family a chance to see me play a lot more in person."
Something that didn't happen often is his first eight years in the NBA.
After being picked by Cleveland in the second round of the 2003 draft—where he was a teammate of fellow rookie LeBron James—Kapono began an odyssey that took him to Charlotte, Miami, Toronto and Philadelphia before winding up in the Purple and Gold. He also managed to make his mark on some of the NBA's high-profile stages, something most role players never get to do.
In 2006 he joined the Heat of Dwyane Wade, Shaquille O'Neal and eventual coach Pat Riley, averaging four points and hitting 40 percent of his three pointers as Miami beat Dallas for the NBA championship. He only played in one playoff game, but he is part of history as one of three teams—Boston and Portland are the others—to lose the first two games of the Finals then come back to win. He also won the All Star weekend Three Point Shot Championship in 2006 and 2007, joining Larry Bird, Craig Hodges, Mark Price, Jeff Hornacek and Peja Stojakovic as the only multiple winners. And for many seasons beginning in 2007, Kapono was the NBA's all-time three-point percentage leader at .461. He has since slipped back in the pack, as his average dropped to .435, mainly due to the way some of his coaches have used him.
When he signed with the Raptors in 2007, he inked a four-year deal with the promise of much more playing time. Never happened, though, as Toronto coach Sam Mitchell played Kapono 20 minutes per game, six fewer than he got with the world champion Heat. He then was traded to the Sixers and was again guaranteed more playing time. And again it happened that the coach reneged, as Doug Collins played him just four minutes per game last season. So, coming to Los Angeles is not only a dream but a shot at career redemption.
"Absolutely," said the 30-year-old Lakewood, Calif., native. "I have no idea why things happened the way they did the last few seasons. I did the things I always have, and I feel I've definitely improved my overall game, yet both coaches decided to go with other guys. It certainly wasn't a good feeling, especially being a competitor, but I just worked as hard as I could to stay ready if a chance came up."
And it did—when Lakers general nanager Mitch Kupchak offered him a free-agent contract.
"Jason is one of the premier shooters in the league," Kupchak said, "and we brought him here to address one of our needs—outside shooting. Jason is also a pro; you can't find anybody in the league with anything bad to say about him. Hopefully he'll be successful here this year and for seasons to come."
Head coach Mike Brown is still trying to put together a steady rotation, so Kapono's playing time has been sporadic and he's averaging just three points in 12 minutes per game. But Brown knows what Kapono can mean to this team, especially with an offense that has been consistently sluggish this season.
"We brought (Jason) here to shoot the ball," Brown said. "That's what he does and that's where he will really make his mark with this team. I'd like to get a consistent bench rotation going soon, and with guys like Jason, Josh (McRoberts) and Metta (World Peace) and the others we should have more good games from our bench. Having a set rotation will help that along.
"Having Jason on this team is important because of his skills and where they fit in with the way we want the team to play."
So, once again, it sound like the former sous chef at Phil Trani's Restaurant in Long Beach, Calif., will finally get that coveted playing time.
"That's one of the reasons I wanted to join this team. We have a great bunch of guys here and that's important. But I know that they can use some outside shooting and I'm going to do my best to provide it to them.
"I'm a Laker now and I want to stay here for the rest of my career."
