The Lakers Missing Link: Chris Duhon?

I've pretty much watched every Lakers game over the last two seasons, so I have a pretty good grasp of what's ailing this team. Beyond having a young core, this team is need of a point guard. Smush Parker is a serviceable player, but not someone that fits well as a point guard in the Lakers system. He's more of a guy that should be coming off the bench and playing about twenty minutes per night providing a scoring kick.

The history of point guards in Phil Jackson's system tells us that the Lakers only need two things from their PG: An ability to hit an open jump shot and the willingness to play good defense. Despite everyone thinking that Jason Kidd would be the savior of this team, I'm not sure that a traditional point guard of Jason's caliber would work in this system (see: Payton, Gary). The Lakers don't need a great play making point guard that always needs the ball like Kidd, but a role player type (in the mold of Derek Fisher) that plays tough aggressive defense, and hits the three-point shot with accuracy.

Other than D-Fish himself, the guy that would fit this role perfectly is none other than the Chicago Bulls' Chris Duhon. Like Fisher and Shane Battier (Duhon's former Duke teammate), Duhon is a "glue" guy and a winner. He's exactly what the Lakers need as their starting PG. He'll step up and hit open trey's (which he'll get plenty of playing in the triangle offense), and he's got enough pride not to get burned over an over again by an opposing point guard. The Bulls are stacked at the guard position. In the off-season, the Lakers should make the Bulls a solid offer and get Duhon, because they can't go another season with Smush as their starting point guard.

Side Note: I actually like Smush Parker. I think he's a great story, and I am hoping that he sticks in the league for years. He's just playing out of position and playing too many minutes in his current role. He'd be great providing scoring and energy off of the bench for twenty minutes per night. But he's definitely not a starting point guard.