Lakers Rumors: Malcolm Brogdon a Target If out on Kyrie Irving, D'Angelo Russell
The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly have some interest in restricted free-agent guard Malcolm Brogdon should they strike out elsewhere in free agency.
Appearing on the Silver Screen and Roll Podcast, Marc Stein of the New York Times reported that if L.A. is unable to land a guard such as Kyrie Irving or D'Angelo Russell, then Brogdon will be on the Lakers' radar.
Stein noted that it would likely take a "really big" offer sheet to pry Brogdon from Milwaukee since the Bucks are "very fond" of him.
The manner in which L.A. approaches the Brogdon situation will likely depend heavily on what the Nets do. Brooklyn is considered the favorite to sign Irving, per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, and doing so would likely result in the Nets renouncing Russell's rights to make him an unrestricted free agent.
Stein noted that while he gets the sense Russell is the Lakers' "preference," that may only be because they believe the Bucks are likely to match any offer sheet that comes Brogdon's way. The Bucks may not have that luxury, though, if they intend on re-signing both Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez, and Stein reported that Milwaukee would like to retain both players.
Brogdon, 26, is one of the biggest NBA draft steals in recent memory. After Milwaukee took him with the No. 36 overall pick in the 2016 draft out of Virginia, he was named Rookie of the Year after the season.
Brogdon has gotten progressively better since then and enjoyed a career year last season. Although he was limited to 64 games because of injury, he averaged 15.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game while shooting 50.5 percent from the field and 42.6 percent from three. He also knocked down an NBA-best 92.8 percent of his free throws, making him one of the most efficient offensive players in the league.
Additionally, he is a high-end defensive player, who had a defensive rating of 102.7 last season. That ranked 11th in the NBA among players who appeared in at least 64 games and third among full-time guards under the same parameters.
Given the fact that L.A. already has plenty of top-end offensive talent in LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Kyle Kuzma, Brogdon may be a better fit than Russell.
The 23-year-old Russell averaged 21.1 points, 7.0 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game last season en route to being named an All-Star for the first time and leading the Nets to the playoffs. The Lakers are more familiar with Russell, of course, since he began his career with the organization, and the possibility he becomes an unrestricted free agent means he may be more accessible to them than Brogdon as well.
