Lakers News: Latest on Timofey Mozgov Signing, Tarik Black Rumors and More

Though perhaps through no choice of their own, the Los Angeles Lakers and team president Mitch Kupchak have stuck to their rebuilding guns this summer.

The Lakers haven't brought on a franchise-altering player in free agency after shedding Kobe Bryant and three years of high-profile draft selections. The team hasn't sat on its hands either, but visions of NBA Finals contention after major moves only apply to the NBA 2K series right now.

Instead, the Lakers have spent cash on areas of need while rounding out a roster able to—on paper—provide the franchise with its most successful season in years while growing into a mature team free agents might want to join. 

Here's the latest.

Tarik Black Back in the Fold

Center looked like the biggest area of need for the Lakers this offseason, with the coaching staff needing an effective enforcer next to the developing Julius Randle.

It was easy to forget about Tarik Black, given the big names on the market. Los Angeles didn't, though, as Shams Charania of The Vertical revealed the team reached an agreement with Black for a two-year extension and revealed the following: "Black’s deal will include a trade kicker and a guarantee date in the second season, sources said."

Black is a critical young piece of the organization when one remembers he is just 24 years old, and posted averages of 7.2 points and 6.3 rebounds per game in 2014.

Last year, he only received an average of 12.7 minutes per game, a point of contention, according to Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times:

It will be interesting to see how much run the Lakers give Black with Timofey Mozgov in the fold, but it sounds like the team wants to see what the Memphis product can develop into with a few more years of experience under his belt.

Until then, the Lakers have a quality high-energy guy who can come off the bench and help the team win games.

Timofey Mozgov Reveals Signing Details

The globe didn't react too well to the impending Mozgov signing.

Most figured the Lakers would pursue the biggest names possible and maybe even sign one, so it became a bit comical when the team wound up reaching an agreement with a guy who just won a title with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Bleacher Report put the contract into numerical form:

The Lakers, though, plan to use Mozgov much more than the champions did.

Mozgov revealed Kupchak promised him something (almost?) better than cash—a chance to get on the court and play the game.

“He said I’m going to play a lot. I really like it,” Mozgov said, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. “He said I’m going to be a big part of the team on the offensive and defensive end.”

The cash is nice, but being wanted and getting to play is even better. Per the writeup, Kupchak had Mozgov on the phone as soon as the market opened. It's surprising at face value when one sees Mozgov's averages of 6.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in 17.4 minutes last season.

While not as young as Black, Mozgov (29) is young enough to grow with the core in place. It's not every day an athletic center at 7'1" and 275 pounds walks through the door, no matter how lost on depth charts he's been over the years.

Mozgov is a caveat for the Lakers presuming the days of the front office wanting to take a character risk such as Dwight Howard are over. As a bonus, Mozgov wanted to join the Lakers, which is still a bit rare, as this summer has shown.

The Luol Deng Panic

Adding young talent to a younger roster is nice, but the Lakers understood going into free agency a veteran or two would help the process along.

Hence the arrival of Luol Deng, formerly of the Miami Heat. The two sides agreed on a contract spanning four years and $72 million, according to Charania.

It seems like a lot and is. The reasoning? According to NBA.com's David Aldridge, the Lakers lost out on another target and didn't want to make it two in a row:

Deng is 31 years old, but universal reputation (a quick Google search widely confirms it) pegs him as a key glue guy, a veteran who plays his heart out every night and leads younger players by example.

This is how it goes—the Lakers could have kept Kent Bazemore around years ago but instead devoted cap to chasing top names. Bazemore blossomed and didn't come back, so Los Angeles gets left overpaying for older targets who can help develop the roster.

There are worse problems to have, believe it or not. Deng won't light up the scoreboard, but he will help the Lakers win more games than usual while especially acting as a mentor for rookie Brandon Ingram.

In fact, it's hard to assign a dollar value to what Deng will do for the future of the Lakers. Kupchak and the front office upping the offer to get him in town is undoubtedly a great move many will look back on favorably down the road.

All stats and info via ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.