Nick Young Declines Lakers Contract Option, Test Free Agency

Nick Young declined his $5.7 million player option for the 2017-18 season Wednesday and will become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, according to the team.

The Los Angeles Times' Brad Turner and The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the news.

Young spent the past four years with the Los Angeles Lakers, and his lone season under the tutelage of head coach Luke Walton proved successful enough that it could net him a nice payday this summer.

In 60 appearances for a fledgling Purple and Gold squad, Young averaged 13.2 points per game on 43.0 percent shooting from the field and a robust 40.4 percent shooting from three.

Furthermore, Young was one of six players—along with Stephen Curry, Kyle Lowry, Bradley Beal, Klay Thompson and Ryan Anderson—who drilled at least 40 percent of his triples while attempting at least seven per game. 

Young isn't going to offer much more than knockdown shooting from deep—evidenced by the Lakers' horrendous 112.1 defensive rating with him on the floor, according to NBA.com's lineup data—but he can thrive as a microwave scorer off the bench for a playoff contender in need of an offensive boost. 

While he may not command a deal worth eight figures annually, Young can fill a niche if he's flanked by a quality point guard in a system that effectively spaces the floor to give him clean spot-up opportunities.