Lakers Targets - Free Agent Class 2020

[lazybatman]

We all know he wasn't risking big offers for 1.5 million dollars

lol..

I just don't want another Avery Bradley kinda MIA when it counts the most next year. What if plays 4 months and quits the game again?

You're talking about hypotheticals.

If he signs a multi year contract, he's going to play four that contract.

Bradley didn't have the foresight of a global pandemic that we needed to take into account

Bradley quit to stay with his son and maybe as protest for the BLM movement - Respectable personal choices either way.
Collison quit cos he wanted to follow his faith - Respectable personal choice.

What I'm saying is these guys certainly have callings bigger than basketball / wanting to win / compete, and whose to say after signing a multi year contract, they won't quit again. Not at all hypothetical, just their personal history.

[lazybatman]

If Lakers are under tax (renounce all FAs except AD, stretch waive Quinn Cook), will have non tax payer MLE (9.8mil) and a bi-annual exception to use (3.9mil). This can get 1 elite + 1 solid role player, which can be deadly when added to the existing roster, while LBJ is still in legendary mode.

How does that work? Can you explain a bit more please.. maybe an example with salaries and CAP details.

I use Shamsports Capulator for my salary cap scenarios.

Basically the gist is that, whatever the luxury tax line is set, lets hypothetically say its 110 mil, if you stay under that then your team gets access to a non tax payer MLE which starts at around 9.8mil, if you go over, then you get the lesser tax payer MLE at around 6.5mil a year. Also you get the Bi-annual exception (BAE) that you get access to every other year, so if you use it one year, you dont have it the next year. Thus there are some nice incentives to stay below the luxury tax.

So in the Lakers case, we gotta renounce all the FAs we dont care about keeping, AD will opt out, waiting to be re-signed for the max, so he's on a massive cap hold that counts against the cap. The team then needs to maneuver itself to stay below that lux tax line to get access to that nice non tax payer MLE and BAE. If we're lucky, McGee will opt out (he wont), KCP and Rondo might opt out, and thus we need to renounce them so as to wipe their cap holds off our cap.

http://www.shamsports.com/capulator?id=15729631285f5c2d43cbd96764504776

This clearly shows that happens, if everyone activates their team option except AD, and Quinn Cook isnt waived. However i dont think the tax line will be as high as it shows on that page. Due to CoVid the cap will likely stay around the same and the team will have to waive Quinn Cook and hope McGee or KCP opts out.

Thanks mate. I've tried but never understood this stuff before. Appreciate it.

So technically, if we can have the role players and AD hold off on verbal agreements for a bit like KD's second year @ GSW, we could technically trade a useless 15.3 mil peice(ergo Danny Green) for a sign and trade scenario of a 25 mil(15.3+9.8) FA over the summer. And later resign all of them back.

That's very interesting and opens up a whole new world of prospects. Too bad we don't have any decent pieces to trade for someone like a Ben Simmons. But we could easily jump into negotiations with higher salary FAs while only sacrificing a couple of pieces.

Thank you!

[Vae Victus]

Thanks mate. I've tried but never understood this stuff before. Appreciate it.

So technically, if we can have the role players and AD hold off on verbal agreements for a bit like KD's second year @ GSW, we could technically trade a useless 15.3 mil peice(ergo Danny Green) for a sign and trade scenario of a 25 mil(15.3+9.8) FA over the summer. And later resign all of them back.

That's very interesting and opens up a whole new world of prospects. Too bad we don't have any decent pieces to trade for someone like a Ben Simmons. But we could easily jump into negotiations with higher salary FAs while only sacrificing a couple of pieces.

Thank you!

Yea the CBA can get confusing unless you spend time poring over the fine print. I'm just so happy there's a nice tool like the Capulator to help armchair REALGms like myself

I can see AD willing to do the Lakers a solid in order to add on more talent, by holding off in declining his player option, cuz he knows he's gonna get a max no matter what.

Role players OTOH have to do whats best for themselves and will opt out as early as possible, if there's a market for their services and getting more money than the existing option that theyre on. This is a terrible FA crop, where freaking FVV is considered for getting a huge ass deal, why wouldnt KCP or Rondo opt out ASAP, if they have a good bubble playoff run, and try to parlay it for a fat deal elsewhere.

McGee has been woefful, i dunno why he got a 2 year deal :/

[lazybatman]

Thanks mate. I've tried but never understood this stuff before. Appreciate it.

So technically, if we can have the role players and AD hold off on verbal agreements for a bit like KD's second year @ GSW, we could technically trade a useless 15.3 mil peice(ergo Danny Green) for a sign and trade scenario of a 25 mil(15.3+9.8) FA over the summer. And later resign all of them back.

That's very interesting and opens up a whole new world of prospects. Too bad we don't have any decent pieces to trade for someone like a Ben Simmons. But we could easily jump into negotiations with higher salary FAs while only sacrificing a couple of pieces.

Thank you!

Yea the CBA can get confusing unless you spend time poring over the fine print. I'm just so happy there's a nice tool like the Capulator to help armchair REALGms like myself

I can see AD willing to do the Lakers a solid in order to add on more talent, by holding off in declining his player option, cuz he knows he's gonna get a max no matter what.

Role players OTOH have to do whats best for themselves and will opt out as early as possible, if there's a market for their services and getting more money than the existing option that theyre on. This is a terrible FA crop, where freaking FVV is considered for getting a huge ass deal, why wouldnt KCP or Rondo opt out ASAP, if they have a good bubble playoff run, and try to parlay it for a fat deal elsewhere.

McGee has been woefful, i dunno why he got a 2 year deal :/

I'm from Toronto and the feeling here is he's gonna stay here forever, and Raps gonna have all the Cap space and Masai's influence to close this one out before he sees open market. He's a great dude. I don't know of a team that won't covet him in the league in any season. Great dude and player.

But there are great FA's like Ibaka, Galinari, Bogdanovic, Bertans, Joe Harris, Mike Conley, Korver, Reddick which shouldn't be unobtainable cos of the money anymore.

We could also technically try to bring back Lonzo, sans Lavaar, if Pels don't wanna pay him 14 mil or extend him for 2022--23. He would be a great 2nd/3rd PG with Lebron and non playoff Rondo. He's an improved playmaker and shooter now, and played 63 games in proper basketball shoes this year.

I only wish we could somehow get some assets to trade for Ben Simmons. I'm sure Lebron can make him comfortable enough to shoot without pressure. He's already one of the league's best play makers and a sure fire future DPOY. With Lebron, AD, Bradley and him, it's a sure title next year.

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[Kilroy]

Just a thought, but... Lonzo is about a $28M cap hit next season... The Pels are pretty much going to have to extend him this summer before the deadline.
I'm thinking he still doesn't really want to be in NO, and my guess is, he may end up a UFA... If we could get him on the cheap as a facilitator, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.
We have a lot of money coming off the books so I'm not sure how any of this looks with Davis and Giannis obviously being top targets. But there's some interesting moves out there to think about.

And right on queue, Lonzo signs with Lebron's agency...

[EArl]

How has Lonzo been playing? Is he past his free throw and 3 woes?
If he cant hit open shots, there Is no point in trying to pursue him.
His defense and passing have been there which is nice.

[Kilroy]

How has Lonzo been playing? Is he past his free throw and 3 woes?
If he cant hit open shots, there Is no point in trying to pursue him.
His defense and passing have been there which is nice.

He had a bit of a resurgence with Zion... It seemed like he was kind of on the outs with the coaches until Zion started playing again, but then he made the most of it... Someone posted his stats above, but his shooting and efficiency went up.

I was never a fan of Ball as a laker, basically because I didn't see him as a future superstar like a lot of people did. But we don't need a superstar now, we just need a guy that can take facilitating out of LeBrons hands and defend taller guards and smaller forwards on the perimeter. He's basically a younger Rondo at this point. It's not like we expect Rondo to carry much of the scoring load.

But I'd only be onboard if he's willing to leave some salary on the table to compete for rings.

[iamworthy]

How has Lonzo been playing? Is he past his free throw and 3 woes?
If he cant hit open shots, there Is no point in trying to pursue him.
His defense and passing have been there which is nice.

He was horrible in the bubble

FG% .305
3pt% .281

7/6/5

[LAKESHOW]

ZO is rondo. Can't shoot. Does facilitate. Has defensive capabilities. Steals and strips the ball. I believe can grow into playoff Lonzo

[Kilroy]

How has Lonzo been playing? Is he past his free throw and 3 woes?
If he cant hit open shots, there Is no point in trying to pursue him.
His defense and passing have been there which is nice.

He was horrible in the bubble

FG% .305
3pt% .281

7/6/5

He was... A saw some of those games... He seemed checked-out and over the whole thing... Which is why I was saying I thought maybe he was done with NOP.
I figure assuming they don't extend him (which may be why he sucked in the bubble and why he has a new agent), it all comes down to whether he's willing to sign cheap here, or if he's looking for top dollar somewhere else. If he signs cheap, it probably means he's engaged and motivated, if he's chasing money elsewhere, you may have a pretty good chance of ending up with Bubble-Ball... Which wouldn't matter to us anyway because there's no way we invest big money in him this off season.

[slifersd]

We are not getting Lonzo guys. We don't have the money to offer him a big enough contract that Pelicans won't match. I think he would be a great fit on this team, but just not realistic.

[wco81]

Lonzo had a good year shooting from 3 until the bubble and the league shutdown in March.

They succeeding in rebuilding his shot mechanics.

Why didn't the Lakers do that?

[Kilroy]

We are not getting Lonzo guys. We don't have the money to offer him a big enough contract that Pelicans won't match. I think he would be a great fit on this team, but just not realistic.

I don't think they want it to get that far... They can't afford the cap hold. Right now, they're like 26M over the cap in holds, they have to pay Ingram or let him walk. Same with Favors...
I think they'd like to keep Ball, but they aren't going to want to pay him a whole lot and I don't think they want sit through the whole RFA process and gamble nobody wants him.
They need to make a trade and get Jru off the books... They do that, maybe they keep Ball... But I don't think that's going to be easy.

[Kilroy]

Lonzo had a good year shooting from 3 until the bubble and the league shutdown in March.

They succeeding in rebuilding his shot mechanics.

Why didn't the Lakers do that?

Lavar... Lonzo needed to get away from his dad's influence before he was really receptive to stuff like that.
We tried getting him shooting coaches and what-not, but his dad was always saying his shot wasn't broken. And up until his buddy stole Lonzo's money, he wasn't really hearing anything else.

[iamworthy]

How has Lonzo been playing? Is he past his free throw and 3 woes?
If he cant hit open shots, there Is no point in trying to pursue him.
His defense and passing have been there which is nice.

He was horrible in the bubble

FG% .305
3pt% .281

7/6/5

He was... A saw some of those games... He seemed checked-out and over the whole thing... Which is why I was saying I thought maybe he was done with NOP.
I figure assuming they don't extend him (which may be why he sucked in the bubble and why he has a new agent), it all comes down to whether he's willing to sign cheap here, or if he's looking for top dollar somewhere else. If he signs cheap, it probably means he's engaged and motivated, if he's chasing money elsewhere, you may have a pretty good chance of ending up with Bubble-Ball... Which wouldn't matter to us anyway because there's no way we invest big money in him this off season.

I'm all for it at the right price.

[lazybatman]

How has Lonzo been playing? Is he past his free throw and 3 woes?
If he cant hit open shots, there Is no point in trying to pursue him.
His defense and passing have been there which is nice.

He had a bit of a resurgence with Zion... It seemed like he was kind of on the outs with the coaches until Zion started playing again, but then he made the most of it... Someone posted his stats above, but his shooting and efficiency went up.

I was never a fan of Ball as a laker, basically because I didn't see him as a future superstar like a lot of people did. But we don't need a superstar now, we just need a guy that can take facilitating out of LeBrons hands and defend taller guards and smaller forwards on the perimeter. He's basically a younger Rondo at this point. It's not like we expect Rondo to carry much of the scoring load.

But I'd only be onboard if he's willing to leave some salary on the table to compete for rings.

Bang On!! Fits our needs to the T with defense and playmaking. He's been fitter and shot better this year thanks to the burnt bridges with BBB.

11m cap hold's a bitch though. I don't see the Pels eating any of it up for a youngster who kinda fits them well too. Besides Lakers have zero young trade pieces. Maybe if he decides to take the minimum offer, Griffin is forced trade him or let him walk for free. I wouldn't put is beyond Rich Paul.

[Ballerhogger]

probably keep the same team danny green might go though

[LAKESHOW]

We win this thing, and I'm Sayin straight up, we can repeat. What we need however, is to lessen the Load next year for Bron. And bring in someone to pair with AD. I trust Pelinka to figure that out. Maybe a scoring guard like a Jackson

[Vae Victus]

If Rondo does well in the playoffs and helps us win. He'll obviously opt out of his deal, does the team bring him back using most of the MLE?

I'm rather worried that after this playoffs, Rondo turns back into a useless pumpkin, like he was last year.

[lazybatman]

We are not getting Lonzo guys. We don't have the money to offer him a big enough contract that Pelicans won't match. I think he would be a great fit on this team, but just not realistic.

I don't think they want it to get that far... They can't afford the cap hold. Right now, they're like 26M over the cap in holds, they have to pay Ingram or let him walk. Same with Favors...
I think they'd like to keep Ball, but they aren't going to want to pay him a whole lot and I don't think they want sit through the whole RFA process and gamble nobody wants him.
They need to make a trade and get Jru off the books... They do that, maybe they keep Ball... But I don't think that's going to be easy.

Elite 3&D wing and playmaker. Should have a flush market if they wanna move him.

I heard a rumour that KD/Kyrie were interested in Jrue. Weakass jokers!!

https://www.sportskeeda.com/basketball/rumor-nba-trade-rumors-brooklyn-nets-offer-3-players-new-orleans-pelicans-jrue-holiday#:~:text=As%20reported%20by%20Brandon%20Robinson,are%20interested%20in%20Jrue%20Holiday.

I'd personally trade Kyrie, before I trade Allen from that team, but these two are not known to be the smartest people in the room anyway.

I hope the Lakers can jump in there and snatch Dinwiddie & Allen for Green, picks & whatever else they need. Sell Pels on the cap relief next year and ability to waive a bunch of contracts.