5 Realistic Targets for Los Angeles Lakers to Chase During 2015 Offseason
Summertime sparks the imagination of NBA fans everywhere, as they creatively transform their favorite team's ho-hum roster into a star-studded juggernaut.
"All we have to do is draft Player X, sign Player Y and trade for Player Z! Then we're back in the mix!"
We've all been guilty of it, but we're not going to fall into that trap today. As fun as it would be to devote more digital ink to the fantasy of the Los Angeles Lakers swinging a miraculous deal for DeMarcus Cousins, let's assume for a second that the Sacramento Kings are a rational organization that realizes it would be insane to trade the most talented center in the league one year into a max deal.
Instead, let's focus on what L.A. can realistically do to improve their squad this summer. The Lakers have the cap space to make a maximum offer to any player they desire.
Even if Marc Gasol, LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard are presumed untouchable, and Kevin Love and LeBron James aren't going anywhere—yet—there are still several tantalizing free-agent prospects for the Lakers to pursue who would represent tangible upgrades to the roster.
Let's take a look at five of them here, ranked in order of an increasing combination of desirability and availability.
5. Rajon Rondo
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Rondo cost himself enough money during his brief stint with the Dallas Mavericks that he is worth looking into, but the Lakers must proceed with caution here.
The enigmatic point guard was one of the best at his position just two seasons ago, but he hasn't gotten back to that level since tearing his ACL.
Physically, he looks fine, but there has been a noticeable drop off in his game. Excuses were made for his final days in Boston—he was disinterested because the Celtics were out of contention, the constant trade chatter surrounding him wore on his spirit, his mediocre supporting cast didn't maximize his abilities.
But after landing in Dallas and faring no better—bickering constantly with Rick Carlisle and getting benched midway through their postseason series—the red flags are even more concerning.
The NBA is now a point guard-driven league, and relying on one who can't shoot and refuses to get fouled is problematic. Rondo is a brilliant passer, but his lack of scoring punch allows opponents to sag off of him and just play the passing lanes.
We've seen him make teams pay and ring up 40-plus point games in the past, but is that Rondo still there? As he hurtles toward the age of 30 after a major injury and a couple of years in decline, the Lakers shouldn't break the bank to find out, no matter how much Kobe Bryant loves the guy.
There is an equilibrium point where taking a chance on Rondo is feasible, but that number is a lot lower than Rondo would like it to be, therefore making this an unlikely match.
4. Brook Lopez
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If the Lakers take a guard in the draft, they will still be looking to fill the center slot with an elite talent. Setting aside the pipe dreams of DeMarcus Cousins and Marc Gasol, Lopez may be the strongest candidate.
Lopez is clearly one of the best offensive centers in the game. He's a scoring machine who can carry an offense for stretches with his hyper-efficiency from the floor and the line. He maintains that efficiency despite a very high usage rate, and he still somehow manages to never turn the ball over.
After destroying the world for a three-week period late in the season—he averaged 26 points per game on 59 percent shooting from the field and 85 percent from the stripe, to go along with 10 rebounds and 2.4 blocks a night—Lopez will surely opt out of the final year of his deal to sign a lavish new contract.
As good a player as he is, any long-term deal is a gamble considering the health risks. Lopez has missed 150 games over the past four seasons, and he has averaged fewer than 32 minutes per game when he has been on the court during that span. There's a laundry list of big men with foot problems whose careers end early, and Lopez, unfortunately, fits that profile.
Additionally, his rebounding has always been lacking for a guy his size and passing is almost a foreign concept to him. Despite his impressive shot-blocking numbers, his defensive impact is limited, which makes a frontcourt pairing with Julius Randle potentially hazardous on that side of the ball.
Locking up a low-post scorer of Lopez's caliber is a tempting proposition, but getting stuck with a massive contract attached to a player who can't suit up is a disaster. With the future finally looking bright, the Lakers should lean toward caution in this instance.
3. Tobias Harris
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Harris' summer of restricted free agency is going to be fascinating to follow.
On the one hand, he's very young—he turns just 23 in July—and has improved every season he's been in the league, blossoming into an above-average starter with room still to grow. That potential screams max contract.
On the other hand, he's not a foundational piece to an organization, and the Orlando Magic are stocked with several young guys on the same track.
Sure, the Magic have oodles of cap space and can easily match any max offer sheet without blinking, but they're acutely aware that they will face similar decisions with high lottery picks like Victor Oladipo, Aaron Gordon and Elfrid Payton in the coming seasons, which will send Orlando deep into luxury tax territory even with the salary cap about to balloon.
Most likely one of those guys will have to be sacrificed, and Harris seems like the most obvious candidate. The Magic have gotten to see him for the longest amount of time, so they can forecast his future at least slightly more accurately than his younger teammates. Moreover, Gordon is cast in a similar mold, and as a much higher draft pick Orlando has to see him as a superior version of Harris.
The bottom line is that Harris may be the most available restricted free agent with a high ceiling that we've seen in quite some time. And the Lakers should pounce on that opportunity.
Harris was mostly a small-ball 4 coming into 2015—and that may still ultimately be his best role—but he showed great promise in expanding his game to the perimeter last season.
He took a larger share of three-pointers than ever before and converted on a very respectable 36.4 percent of them—a vast improvement on the 25 percent he shot in 2014 and the 28 percent mark he held for his career coming into last year. Particularly encouraging was his blistering 45 percent success rate on corner triples.
The biggest concern with Harris comes on defense, where he has struggled guarding wings. According to 82games.com, Harris allows a 15.9 PER to opposing 3s, while holding enemy 4s to a more modest 14.4 PER.
Still, he's young enough to improve on that end while also developing into an offensive force. At his age and with his upside, Harris would be a sound investment.
2. Jimmy Butler
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There's no way that the Chicago Bulls could possibly let Butler—who is a restricted free agent—slip away after the year he just had, right?
After all, Butler was named the NBA's Most Improved Player, made his first All-Star team, earned Second Team All-Defense honors and emerged as Chicago's best player and one of the best two-way stars in the entire league.
But Yahoo!'s Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Butler may find a way to muscle his way out of the Windy City, and that the Lakers specifically have caught the young stud's eye.
Los Angeles should not hesitate to do whatever it can to ink Butler to any deal he wants. He wants an out after one year and a massive trade kicker? Sounds good. Just grab the asset and the Bird rights and the production.
Butler's explosion last season was remarkable. The unheralded final pick of the 2011 draft expanded his scoring output by almost 50 percent—up to the hallowed mark of 20 points per game—and even saw a large uptick in efficiency despite a hefty increase in responsibility and usage rate. His 11.2 Win Shares ranked sixth in the entire league.
Nothing could have been a bigger selling point than his performance during the playoffs, particularly in Chicago's second-round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Butler took on the task of guarding LeBron James for 42 minutes a night, and he still had the wherewithal to be Chicago's leading offensive weapon and maintain his efficiency. He was unafraid of the moment, nailing huge step-back threes at the end of close games like he'd been doing it his whole life.
The way he went toe-to-toe with the best player in the world and held his own over the course of the series was beyond impressive. Stealing Butler away from the Bulls would be a coup for L.A.
1. Goran Dragic
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After the Miami Heat outbid the Lakers for Dragic's services at the 2015 trade deadline, it appeared that the southpaw would remain in South Beach for the foreseeable future.
But the Miami Mafia could be dissolving before our very eyes.
The Heat failed to reach the postseason in a laughably bad Eastern Conference even after acquiring Dragic. A lot of that had to do with Chris Bosh being unavailable due to a health condition, but that has to give you some pause, especially considering Dwyane Wade's perennial physical challenges.
Speaking of Wade, the Miami stalwart could very well be headed out as well. According to the Miami Herald's Barry Jackson, Wade is open to leaving the Heat should contract negotiations go ill. Luol Deng can opt out of the final year of his deal to secure one last long-term contract as well.
If the franchise cornerstone decides to move on, along with another headlining player, only a year after the best player on the planet did the same, Miami may not be the hot destination it is reputed to be. Dragic will be sniffing other offers, and the Lakers are a team he reportedly has interest in.
That interest is mutual, and the Lakers should have no qualms about handing Dragic a max contract. People forget that the Slovenian star was the fourth best guard in the entire league in 2014—and it was no fluke. Though his production took a dip last season, it was not due to a decline in skills, as ESPN.com's Kevin Pelton beautifully articulated.
After reaching Miami, Dragic's numbers bounced back a bit. Most importantly, his assist and free-throw rates went back to his career norms, and his scoring rose slightly despite fewer field goal attempts per game.
Dragic would give the Lakers the dynamic point guard they've been lacking for years. And he can play next to Jordan Clarkson in the same backcourt. Clarkson has the size to guard on the wing and Dragic himself has prior experience—and even some success—defending 2-guards.
Come July 1, the first call the Lakers make should be to the Dragon.
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