Rob Pelinka & Lakers Sign 6'10 Center Who Was Recently Waived By Rockets

Back in 2021, Rob Pelinka took a chance on an undrafted free agent named Austin Reaves. It was a depth signing that barely made headlines at the time but eventually became one of the best-value finds of his tenure as Lakers general manager.

Pelinka is hoping lightning strikes twice with a similarly low-profile move. The Lakers have signed 6-foot-10 center Rafael Castro, who was waived by the Houston Rockets just over a week ago, while releasing forward William Kyle III to clear a roster spot.

The team confirmed the move in a statement Friday: "The Los Angeles Lakers have signed forward Rafael Castro. In a corresponding move, the team has waived forward William Kyle III."

ESPN's Dave McMenamin reported that Castro is joining training camp on an Exhibit 10 deal, a non-guaranteed contract typically used to evaluate depth pieces before the regular season begins.

Castro's path to Los Angeles has moved quickly. The 23-year-old went undrafted out of George Washington in June after ranking 68th on ESPN's final pre-draft big board, then signed a two-way contract with Houston in late August.

That stint lasted barely two months before the Rockets waived him on Oct. 1. During his final college season, Castro averaged a well-rounded 15.3 points, 9.1 rebounds, 1.8 steals and 1.7 blocks per game, production that earned him a second straight Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team selection and finalist honors for the conference's top defensive player award.

He began his college career at Providence before transferring to George Washington.

Los Angeles currently carries 16 guaranteed contracts and must trim down to 15 before opening night. And with the frontcourt already thin behind the starting rotation, Pelinka appears willing to keep auditioning options deep into the preseason.

Castro now has the remainder of training camp and two more exhibition games to make an impression on head coach JJ Redick before any final roster decisions are made.

The move cost William Kyle III his spot in the Lakers' plans, at least for now. The 6-foot-9 forward signed his own Exhibit 10 deal with Los Angeles on Sept. 27 after a senior season at Syracuse, where he averaged 8.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.5 blocks across 32 games.

He'd previously played at South Dakota State and UCLA earlier in his college career.

Kyle's final appearance in a Lakers uniform came Thursday against the Sacramento Kings, where he logged three minutes, scored two points and recorded a block. Like Castro, Kyle signed under the Exhibit 10 structure, meaning he remains eligible for a bonus worth up to $91,000 if he spends at least 60 days with the Lakers' G League affiliate, the Coachella Valley Lakers, formerly known as South Bay.

Both players, in other words, are now positioned as realistic G League contributors even as their NBA futures with Los Angeles remain unresolved.

Between Castro's quick turnaround from Houston and Kyle's short-lived audition in Los Angeles, the Lakers' late-preseason roster shuffling reflects just how unsettled the bottom of their depth chart remains heading into opening night.

Whether Castro ends up following the Austin Reaves path to a real NBA role or simply becomes another name who passes through the organization's G League pipeline, Pelinka's willingness to keep testing options this late in training camp shows the Lakers aren't done fine-tuning their roster just yet.