The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the many teams in the NBA trying to figure out which way to take their franchise in 2014. With limited cap space and two aging veterans their options are limited. The Lakers do not have tradable assets to acquire players like Kevin Love and Rajon Rondo, so they must settle for a few other options while trading one veteran in the process.
The Lakers have been linked to both Kevin Love and Carmelo Anthony this offseason, but neither player make much sense for the team. The Lakers have a first round draft pick to offer the Timberwolves for Love, but other than that they really have no one they can put up in a player package that would be worth Minnesota's time. Anthony is ready to sign with a team set to win and pairing with aging Kobe Bryant is not that. The Lakers also do not have the cap space to sign the Knicks forward without getting rid of someone like Steve Nash which easier said than done. So who do the Lakers consider?
The Lakers would be better served waiting until 2015 to make their free agency run since they will have more cap space to work with, but there are several free agents coming off the board this offseason the team might be able to afford. Jabari Davis of Basketball Insiders outlines an offseason plan for the Lakers that could include signing players like Lance Stephenson, Eric Bledsoe and Kyle Lowry while drafting players like Jabari Parker or Marcus Smart seventh overall.
According to Davis, the Lakers will aim to settle the point guard issue in free agency. Lowry is the best available after his breakout year with Toronto averaging 17.9 points and 7.4 assists per game. He will command a nice contract that could reach into the $13 million range if the point guard plays his cards right. Lance Stephenson will be looking for a multi-year deal considering his age while Bledsoe might be the more affordable target for the Lakers. With Steve Nash unlikely to be a regular contributed this upcoming season, getting a real scoring threat in Los Angeles will be key.
The Lakers also have the draft to work with. Holding the No. 7 overall pick leaves them out of the running to get players like Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid or Tyler Ennis. David predicts they look to either Jabari Parker or Marcus Smart to bring in and learn under Bryant for the next two years.
Any of these options will then leave the Lakers to re-sign either Pau Gasol or Nick Young. They likely cannot keep both, again unless they trade away Nash and get his contract off the books.