Lakers officially sign Jordan Hill

The Lakers' Jordan Hill smiles after securing a rebound before a timeout and the lead against the Celtics, Friday, February 21, 2014, at Staples Center. (Photo by Michael Owen Baker/L.A. Daily News)

The Lakers’ Jordan Hill smiles after securing a rebound before a timeout and the lead against the Celtics, Friday, February 21, 2014, at Staples Center. (Photo by Michael Owen Baker/L.A. Daily News)

The Lakers officially signed Jordan Hill to a two-year, $18 million deal on Wednesday, adding a power forward that usually helped the Lakers on defense and rebounding.

“Jordan has been a consistent contributor for us over the last three seasons and we are pleased to keep him in the Laker family,” Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said in a statement. “Jordan’s frontcourt versatility is a benefit to our roster and his on-court work ethic is something we value on our team. We hope he’ll continue to work hard and develop as an NBA player.”

Despite posting a career-high 9.7 points and 7.8 rebounds in the 2013-14 season, Hill’s work ethic has actually come into question. Though he prides himself on making hustle plays, the Lakers became frustrated that his energy level and defensive rotations became inconsistent. It also did not help that Hill felt frustrated with Mike D’Antoni’s system that featured him playing inconsistent minutes.

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Follow L.A. Daily News Lakers beat writer Mark Medina on Twitter. E-mail him at mark.medina@langnews.com