The LA Lakers may not be great this year, but they are setting up for the future and names like Rajon Rondo, Greg Monroe, Ricky Rubio, Kenneth Faried, Klay Thompson, Kawhi Leonard and DeAndre Jordan could be potential free agent options once they hit the market and Los Angeles also may look at trades this season with players like Steve Nash or Jeremy Lin depending on how things play out with Kobe Bryant.
The Lakers are coming into the season after having a terrible year and they are hoping to have Kobe Bryant back healthy for the duration of the schedule. Last season Bryant played in just 10 games and the team ended up near the bottom of the west and while the Lakers are not expected to win a championship this year, the team should be markedly better than last season.
Pro Basketball Talk writes that the Lakers are planning on making a big push next year in free agency, as they will have a ton of money to spend after some contracts get off the books. The team has some players signed now past next season, but not many and with Steve Nash and his contract gone, the team can spend and Lin will also have his money off the books. The team hoped Kevin Love would be available and even though he likely will not be, Rajon Rondo is heading towards free agency and so is LaMarcus Aldridge, while Monroe and Rubio also could be on the market next offseason.
According to ESPN.com, the Lakers looked at trying to trade for Thompson earlier in the offseason, which would have been part of a Kevin Love deal. This was before the draft and the Warriors were deep into talks with the Wolves about Love and the Lakers potentially were trying to get a three team deal done with their top 10 draft pick to get Thompson. The Lakers felt Thompson would be perfect for their system and also the fact that his father once played for the Lakers, but now he is still in GS after the team did not want to trade him to the Wolves.
Thompson potentially could be a restricted free agent after next season and if he takes a hard line with the Warriors, there is a chance he could sign an offer sheet and leave. Rondo has not yet signed a deal with the Celtics and he is coming into the final year of his contract and could be a major target. Rondo will be the top point guard on the market if he makes it into free agency and the Lakers could be a destination for him.
The Lakers have kept a number of their own free agents this offseason, including signing back Nick Young and Xavier Henry along with Ryan Kelly. The team wanted to keep Young after he put up some very solid numbers last season, while Jordan Hill and Wesley Johnson are also back. The Lakers should be better than last season and if they can get set well into next summer, they could be back in the championship mix once again after a few years of struggling.