While clearing Luol Deng‘s salary from their books would be the most effective way of clearing cap room to sign two maximum-salary free agents in 2018, the Lakers don’t intend to sacrifice any future first-round picks to facilitate a Deng deal, source tell Bobby Marks of ESPN (Insider link).
As Marks notes, this past offseason, the Lakers were able to move one of the two ill-advised contracts they signed in the summer of 2016, sending Timofey Mozgov to Brooklyn. However, that deal cost the team a former second overall pick in D’Angelo Russell.
Deng’s four-year, $72MM deal was the Lakers’ other misstep from 2016’s free agent period, with that massive contract quickly turning into a negative asset. Moving it in a trade similar to the Mozgov swap would likely mean attaching at least one future first-round pick, if not more. For a rebuilding team, parting with so many first-rounders would be “reckless,” Marks writes.
Assuming the Lakers’ stance on Deng doesn’t change, working out a buyout and/or waiving him via the stretch provision look like the most viable paths to creating cap room. I examined the stretch provision in detail on Thursday, using Knicks center Joakim Noah as a case study, but Deng – whose contract is very similar to Noah’s – is another top candidate to be stretched.
Deng is owed $18MM in 2018/19 and $18.81MM in 2019/20. If the Lakers stretch him anytime before August 31, 2018, his salaries for those two seasons would be spread across five years at a rate of $7.362MM annually. If L.A. decides to roll its cap room over to 2019, the team could keep Deng for one more season, then waive him later and spread the final year of his deal across three seasons at a rate of $6.27MM per year.
There’s also a scenario in which the Lakers could extend and stretch Deng, potentially further reducing his annual cap hits by stretching them across more seasons. Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report broke down that idea last month, though it’s not clear if the franchise is considering it.
Deng & Cash for a future late 1’st round selection
I think you’ve got a few things mixed up. Deng plus a future late 1st for simply $75k cash from another team wouldn’t be appealing to any team. Multiple picks would need to be attached for such a deal to start interesting others.
“Lakers not interesting” I could agree with that…although most probably won’t #spellcheckhomie
Ugh, fixed, thanks.
Always keeping you on your toes Luke lol
I think the best way to get rid of deng would be to attach randle along with him and see if a team bites on randle due to his improvements and he’s still young. Randle most likely isn’t coming back and we have a chance to dump deng and trade him we have to consider it
Could they just waive him?
Waiving him leaves money against the cap. So does a buy out.
I appears Deng will have to sit for a while. Right now, it is better to pay him to sit than expend valuable assets to dump his salary.
The only option I see is to package him with Randle and only because of the big cap hit Randle will take next summer. Clarkson is an integral part of the second unit, and having a strong second unit is important. Randle is too, but it is his contract situation that is troubling if you want to sign max contract guys like PG & Boogie.
Hmm – can’t edit my comment, so here is the continuance.
If they can’t sign who they want next summer it is better still pay Deng to sit, and then with only 1 year left on his contract, he will be easier to move by the 2019 trade deadline of in the summer of 2019.
Makes sense. Man another year of Deng!
Damn!
Everyone but Mitch Kupchak knew a 31 year old Loul Deng wasn’t worth 72 mil.
Correction, everyone except Jim Buss knew a 31-year-old Luol Deng wasn’t worth $72MM. Kupchak probably only went along to keep his job just a little longer, realizing that he had already hitched his wagon to the wrong heir to Jerry Buss.
They really should send a 1st with him to get rid of his contract though. I know they already gave up DeAngelo with Mozgov to get rid of that contract. I also know that Mitch Kupchak set them up for failure by signing Mozgov and Deng, and trading a pick and D-Russ just to get rid of those contracts looks bad, but they already have Lonzo and Kuzma as their rookies, they’re going to have to get paid eventually. Randle’s cap number keeps going up and Clarkson is expendable as they chase top free agents. As they get better, their draft picks lose value because they get worse picks. If they get rid of Deng’s contract, they are ready to go in free agency.