DeMarcus Cousins, Rajon Rondo and LeBron's Updated Lakers Roster Without Kawhi
Although the Los Angeles Lakers did not land Kawhi Leonard in free agency, they have added several quality pieces around LeBron James and Anthony Davis since Friday night.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Lakers agreed to a two-year, $30 million deal with veteran shooting guard Danny Green. Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports later reported that the Lakers signed another talented guard in Quinn Cook to a two-year, $6 million contract.
ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported that the Lakers are also bringing back two players from last year's team in center JaVale McGee and guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Wojnarowski followed that up by reporting that the Lakers signed big man DeMarcus Cousins to a one-year deal and point guard Rajon Rondo to a two-year contract.
Here is a look at where the Lakers' roster stands currently, per Spotrac:
- PF/C Anthony Davis
- PF Kyle Kuzma
- SF LeBron James
- SG Danny Green
- PG Rajon Rondo
- PF/C DeMarcus Cousins
- PG Quinn Cook
- C JaVale McGee
- PF Johnathan Williams (Qualifying Offer)
- SF Jared Dudley
- SG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
- SG Troy Daniels
Assuming Williams remains on the team and isn't poached as a restricted free agent, the Lakers have three roster spots remaining.
One of them will likely be filled by small forward Talen Horton-Tucker, who was a second-round pick out of Iowa State in the 2019 NBA draft. Horton-Tucker was selected by the Orlando Magic, and his rights were traded to L.A.
Additionally, the Lakers signed Gonzaga guard Zach Norvell Jr. to a two-way deal after he went undrafted, and they also signed undrafted forward Jordan Caroline out of Nevada to an Exhibit 10 contract, which can eventually be converted into a two-way contract.
If Norvell and Caroline aren't added to the 15-man roster, the Lakers have a couple of open spots to fill out the roster and secure additional depth.
Adding veteran guard depth in Jamal Crawford is a possibility, as is securing a younger option such as Trey Burke or Delon Wright.
In terms of bigs, the Lakers have reunited the All-Star duo of Davis and Cousins from their time with the New Orleans Pelicans, plus the return of McGee adds some defensive ability.
If L.A. wants additional depth there, Kenneth Faried and JaMychal Green are among the potential options.
As things stand right now, general manager Rob Pelinka has done a good job of recovering from missing out on Leonard, who agreed to a deal with the rival Los Angeles Clippers after they acquired Paul George in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Lakers' core of James, Davis and Kuzma is now surrounded by a number of quality shooters and defenders.
Green is a two-time NBA champion and one-time NBA All-Defensive Team selection who shot 45.5 percent from beyond the arc for the world champion Toronto Raptors last season.
Cook is a one-time NBA champion who has shot 41.8 percent from three-point range during his career with the Dallas Mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans and Golden State Warriors.
Cousins is a four-time All-Star who averaged 16.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.3 steals in 30 games for the Warriors last season coming off a torn Achilles.
Daniels and Dudley are three-and-D specialists, while Caldwell-Pope is an offensively gifted player who has averaged at least 11 points per game in each of the past five seasons.
It can be argued that the Clippers' core of Leonard, George, Lou Williams, Patrick Beverley and Montrezl Harrell is superior, but in terms of depth, it appears as though the Lakers have put together a legitimate championship contender.
