Over 24 hours after the official start of free agency in the NBA, the Los Angeles Lakers haven’t made any additions at all.
There was talk that they could perhaps acquire Klay Thompson, who was a big part of the foundation of the dynastic Golden State Warriors. Instead, Thompson has reportedly chosen to go to the Dallas Mavericks.
LeBron James is a free agent, and while it is generally believed he will stay with the Lakers, the question is how much money he will demand on his new contract. Dave McMenamin reported that he would be willing to take a pay cut so that L.A. could have its full mid-level exception available to use on Thompson, James Harden or center Jonas Valanciunas.
But all three are off the board now, and the team’s options are slim. One intriguing option remaining is wing DeMar DeRozan, and according to Brian Windhorst, James may be willing to take a pay cut to accommodate DeRozan.
“I think there’s more than three,” said Brian Windhorst on “The Hoop Collective” podcast of how many players James would be willing to take a pay cut for. “I think DeMar DeRozan is on that list as well. And there may be another one or so.”
DeRozan is not a 3-point shooter by any means, and people feel his defense is suspect, which means his fit on the Lakers would be questionable. But he averaged 24.0 points on 48% field-goal shooting and 5.3 assists this past season.
He’s a bona fide threat in crunch time, and he ranked fifth in fourth-quarter points per game during the 2023-24 season. If the Lakers were to figure out how to hide his lack of outside shooting, he could greatly boost their offense while significantly reducing James’ workload.
DeRozan is a free agent after making a salary approaching $30 million a year over the last several seasons. He would either have to take a major pay cut to fit into L.A.’s mid-level exception, or L.A. would have to pull off a sign-and-trade deal with the Chicago Bulls to land him.
