Aloha

So the soap opera continues. The latest is that the Lakers are the only team with interest in Kyrie. There is rumblings, probably started by his agent, that he’s willing to take the Lakers MLE. If it was anyone other then Kyrie, I would say they are just blowing smoke. But Kyrie is bent so you never know. I’d take Kyrie for the MLE for sure, but I have a hard time believing that’s going to happen.

No team likes to have talent walk for nothing. As Lakers fans we know this all to well. But if Im the Nets, I would say go ahead, opt out. The Lakers can’t do a sign and trade for him because of the hard cap. Kyrie would have to opt in for the Lakers to make a trade. And if you’re the Nets, do you really want to trade for Westbrook? If there truly is no other teams interested I don’t think Kyrie has much leverage. It has been said that the length of the contract is the issue, along with provisions about the number of games played. Given all the time he has missed that’s not unreasonable. It will be interesting to see what happens.

Aloha,

While I think everyone would like to see trades that could reshape our roster into a contender, as time goes by I have become less optimistic that that will happen. Russ is hard because there are only a couple of teams with contracts that they may want to move and he isn’t a player that most teams actually want. At this point trading Russ really doesn’t guarantee that we will become contenders. So the question becomes is it better to ride his contract out and see if we can build next year. As for THT, recent moves by other teams that the Lakers have approached proves that he’s not in high demand either. One of the mistakes that Robb has made that’s over looked is giving THT that player option in year 3 was huge. He has shown promise but teams are reluctant to trade for him because if he does break out he can walk. All of this said, I still see ways that we can be at least as good as if we made some trades. I’m not saying it will bring another banner this year, but then realistic trades won’t bring rings either.

1. Health, Health, Health. If LeBron and AD are not healthy, nothing else matters.

2. AD has to be bubble AD most of the season. He has to be the guy that totally dominated Embid when we played. I would love to see him regain his 3 point shot but even without it he’s still a force on both sides of the ball. I think Ham is the perfect coach for him.

3. Russ doesn’t need to be a star, but if he can just be a plus role player, that would be huge.

3. Can LeBron give us a little more defense on the wing? I hope so because we will need that.

4. Can Nunn stay healthy? If he can, he is the perfect point guard for LeBron. He plays hard on defense which I’m sure coach Ham will love. He is also a 3 level scorer and he can play off the ball, which is a must with LeBron. All the talk was about LeBron and AD’s injuries but Nunn missing the season really hurt as well. He was considered one of the biggest steals in free agency and he was the talk of training camp before the injury. Having him available will be like having an extra mid level free agent added.

The kids are key and they all need a serious growth spurt.

1. THT appears to be staying unless something unexpected happens And that might not be terrible. The expectations for him I believe were inflated. He was the 46th pick in the 2nd round. He’s already out preformed what a team usually gets there. He’s only 21 and he does some nice things. He has a good handle, can play make, score at the rim in a variety of ways and is pretty good on the ball defensively.
He needs to bring his 3 point shooting at least close to 35% this year. He needs to really improve his defensive rotations and he needs to use better judgment when attacking the paint. If he can do that he will be a plus for the team.

2. Austin was a delightful surprise last year. You really couldn’t ask for a better in his first year. He needs to work on his strength and lateral quickness. He was beat a lot last year by quick guards. He has a nice stroke and I see no reason why he can’t be a 35 to 38% shooter from 3. Add this to what he already brings and he could become a key role player on a good team.

3. Stanley and Gabriel were both nice surprises. Stanley flashed the ability that made him a lottery pick, while Gabriel demonstrated why he was a 5 star recruit out of high school. I think they both will improve even more defensively with a full training camp. Stanley may have been our best defender after AD and proved he could guard 1 through 5. I was really impressed when he was matched up with guys like Harden. Gabriel not only defended but was a great rebounder as well. They both need to improve their 3 point shooting, up to the league average. And Stanley needs to slow it down some when he’s leading the break. He got in trouble some last year.

I don’t see Max or our two way guys contributing much this year but then I didn’t see Austin doing much either. Unfortunately Austin got his opportunity because everything went wrong with most of our free agents last year. If Christie gets a lot of minutes I hope it’s because he deserved them, not because the team is a disaster again.

Free agency. One great thing about this year is the lack of cap space around the league. We will be able to find some quality with both our mini MLE and vet minimum contracts. With so many open roster spots and available minutes there will be guys that will see the Lakers as an opportunity to re-establish their value. Anything can happen but here are a few names that maybe available to us.

Mini MLE

1. Malik is still at the top of the list for me. He is the best scorer that we can land. While he’s not great defensively he tries and at 24 will improve. Defense is usually the last thing to come to young players. He price range seems to be 6 to 10 mil. I have read some that say he will get 10 mil while some say he will resign with the Lakers. Considering we will have cap space next year will he bet on himself again? He does like playing for the Lakers. I’m hoping he does.

2. Gary Harris is another 6 to 10 mil guy. Because of his injury history he could end up closer to 6mil although he was healthy last year. While not the scorer that Malik is, he is a pretty good defender that has a 3 point shot.

3. Otto Porter Jr is a guy that I debated putting on the list. Not because of his skill set, we all saw how valuable he was for the Warriors. But that’s why I wasn’t sure. If he falls to the 6 mil mark I’m pretty sure the Warriors retain him with their MLE. With Iggy retiring and Green getting older he’s pretty valuable. But he was so good for the Warriors he may get a full MLE somewhere.

4. If you are a gambler Jalen Smith is your guy. 6’ 11’ PF/C he is only 22 and showed some of his lottery pick potential with the Pacers. He has a lot of offensive tools with a 3 point shot but he’s a project on defense. That’s where coach Ham comes in. Because of a contract flub by the Suns, the Pacers can only offer him 4.5 mil unless the use their MLE on him. We will see what they do. If the Pacers do trade Turner they very well may keep him.

5. Bruce Brown is a 6’ 4” shooting guard that actually played some PF for the Nets, great defender with a 3. Again I really don’t think he will be available because the Nets have bird rights.

Here are a few names that could fall the vet minimum status.

1 TJ Warren. He’s a 15 mil guy if healthy. But after playing only 4 games in two years he’s a huge risk who according to several insiders could end up a minimum player. I wouldn’t sign him with the MLE because of his broken foot issues but I would probably roll the dice on a minimum contract because if he stays healthy and regains his form it would be a huge signing. I also think the Lakers will be his first choice if he does fall because there is a chance to start here.

2. Taurean Prince is a 28 6’ 7” combo forward that can defend and shoots .376 from 3. He definitely wouldn’t be here in other years but several insiders say he could fall this far.

3. Delon Wright is a 6’ 5” defense first PG that can also play off the he ball and hit the 3. He would be a great get.

4. Danuel House. Another long wing that is a very good defender. Good 3 point shooter. The only reason he could fall this far is he has had attitude issues. But after having to prove himself with 10 day contracts and a very nice run at the end of the year with the Jazz perhaps it humbled him. For the vet minimum he’s worth the gamble.

5. Two centers I like at the minimum are Boogie and Damien Jones. We never should have let Jones go. Either could possibly sign for more but I would love to land one of them.

Old guys. While I don’t want many but I wouldn’t mind adding are Wes Matthews, DJ Augustine or of course Melo. Just not all 3.

If everything breaks right we could be a pretty good team. Hopefully after 2 years of just about everything going wrong, will we finally have a year where everything goes right? I hope soZ

Aloha,

It looks like the Lakers went with went with upside instead of a play and plug player. He was a 5 star recruit that didn’t live up to that. He is a good defender and had a reputation as a shooter coming in to college. That didn’t materialize but he has a nice stroke and he’s 19. It was said that if he rediscovered that shot that he would be a likely lottery pick next year. I really trust our scouting department so we will see if they were right again.

Aloha,

This off season the Lakers have 3 things going for them.

1. This is a very deep draft. Covid delayed a lot of players entering the draft the last couple of years. Players in our 35th pick range would have been late 1st rounders in other years. Also there will be undrafted players that would have been drafted in previous years.

2. There is not a lot of free agent money available.

3. The Lakers have a lot of open roster spots. This will be enticing for free agents wanting to repair their value. This will draw both veteran free agents and undrafted rookies.

Aloha,

The chatter around the league is that the Hornets are talking to the Pacers about Turner. The Pacers love Hayward and the Hornets have the 13th and 15th pick in the draft this year. It’s very possible that we see Hayward and a 1st going to the Pacers for Turner.

But I don’t think that would necessarily kill a deal for Russ. The Hornets seem to still be interested in Russ. The Pacers owe Scary Terry around 70 mil over the next 3 years. And while he’s a good player he’s not the best fit with Ball, now firmly in charge at point guard. Terry would be a much better fit on the Lakers because he is a decent shooter and can play off the ball. I would suspect we would see Terry and maybe Plumlee to the Lakers for Russ and a 1st round pick. I would love Ubre but if the Hornets move Hayward then they probably want to hold onto Kelly. I actually like this better then Hayward because he’s 32 and hasn’t been able to stay healthy.

Aloha,

Over the last couple of weeks we have close click bait headlines that the Lakers are interested in LaVine, Beal and now Kyrie. Of course they are. Duh! I’m waiting for the headline for that some team is interested in Westbrook, even THT. That hasn’t happened yet. Until it does it’s all click bait.

Aloha,

The first big man trade just hit. The Rockets received an unremarkable
Collection of players BUT, they also receive the 26 th pick in this years draft. Like I’ve been saying all along, a pick 5 years down the road is not as valuable as a pick that can be used right away. I expect more of the same this summer.

Shams Charania
@ShamsCharania
· 5m
Sources: The Mavericks are sending Boban Marjanovic, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss and the No. 26 pick to the Rockets for Christian Wood.

Aloha,

Jabari Walker is a guy I’ve been hearing about lately. The son of former Laker Samaki Walker he worked out today for the Lakers. Definitely the kind of forward we should be looking at. By the way he is a huge a LeBron fan which would be a plus if he goes undrafted.

e: Second round-UDFA
PPG
14.6
RPG
9.4
3FG PCT
34.6
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We didn’t quite get a full-blown breakout season from Jabari Walker at Colorado after he thrived in a small role as a freshman, but the foundation is there for him to continue his development into a solid role player in the NBA. The 6-8 forward has good positional size and length, strong shooting touch (he was in the 93rd percentile as a frosh in spot-up shooting situations) and really good rebounding instincts for his position. If he can return to form as a knockdown catch-and-shoot guy (after being miscast in a big role as a sophomore) and add that to his length and defense then there’s more than enough here for him to return value as a real value late in the draft or even as an undrafted priority free agent.

Aloha,

It is too early to tell if there will be trades or what free agents we can land. But one hire that needs to happen is a all world shooting coach. All of our young guys showed a lot of potential in certain areas. The one area they all need help in is shooting. If these young guys can be elevated into the 35% range they could become a very useful core. Perhaps a great coach could help Russ with his 3 point shot. What is clear, trade or no trade we will need contribution s from at least a couple of these guys. I believe in their abilities to defend and even improve in that area. It’s the shooting that will tell how far we can go with these kids.

Aloha,

So it appears that Rasheed Wallace one of the great villains of Laker lore will now be one of the coaches. Ironic isn’t it? All I know is Rasheed was one nasty dude. Hopefully some of that nasty rubs off on our young guys. Heck I hope some of the Nasty rubs off on AD. I wonder though, are coaches suspended after 16 technical fouls like players😂

Aloha,

Well the Russ trade proposals keep coming hot and heavy and will only intensify over the coming weeks. Now of course all of these are writers coming up with them. There actually has only been two teams that are said to be possibly interested in a trade for Russ. The Hornets and the Rockets.

So what I have been doing is pulling up these teams on Bleacher Report just to see what the local writers with some inside information have to say. Sadly Russ is never mentioned. For instance the Pacers are interested in Colin Sexton. They could offer Buddy to the Cav’s for Sexton. Considering the Cav’s need floor spacers they would probably go for it. It would depend on the offers Sexton receives.

This is the way it is with every team. Even the Hornets site aren’t talking about Russ but they are talking a lot about other targets. Primarily centers with Hayward mentioned. This is why I think the Lakers have asked for plans on using Russ. Not so much that they want to keep him but after a month of talking to teams there is the very real possibility that they won’t be able to find a trade.

The same thing goes for THT and Nunn, neither are talked about on other sites. On the brighter side Monk is not being talked much by the teams that could sign him for more then the mini mid level.

It’s still early and deals that no one has even thought of may surface. Still, I’m not holding my breathe.

Aloha,

Marc Stein has reported that the Lakers are telling
Anyone who will listen that they are keeping Russ. That they will not give up future assets to move him nor will they waive and stretch him. Posturing? Perhaps, or it could be reality setting in. The Front office has had ample time to talk with everyone in the league and gage what opportunities are out there. There simply may not be a trade that they see as a path to elevating the team into contender status. And why waste assets on players that won’t do that.

A good example is the Pacers. Buddy and Brogdon is everyone’s favorite trade. Yet there hasn’t been one hint of interest coming from the Pacers camp. They have repeatedly said they are going to build while trying to stay competitive. That are not tearing it down. Considering they are way under the salary cap and not an ideal destination for free agents there really isn’t a need to create additional cap space. They can simply hold onto their players until the right opportunity comes along.
Perhaps the Lakers would consider adding draft picks to obtain the two but it’s likely that a trade isn’t available.

The two teams that the rumors were supposed to come from the front offices are the Rockets and Hornets. The Rockets want a first and I wouldn’t do that either. I’m sure the Hornets interest revolves around Hayward. The Lakers probably have talked with a Mitch. Maybe the Lakers do not like the Hornets proposal. Honestly I could see why the Lakers would hesitate about giving up picks for Hayward.

The Lakers will have cap space again after Russ falls off the books. Perhaps they are not willing to take on contracts for the players that maybe available for several years after Russ would have been gone, if it is not a championship move. Or Perhaps after talking with other teams there just isn’t a trade available. While expiring contracts are valuable 47 mil for one player is problematic. And if that player is seen as a negative it becomes even more difficult. While I rarely say never, I’m not optimistic that a trade will happen for Russ this summer.