Lakers Rumors

Los Angeles Notes: Westbrook, Slow Starts, Lue

Lakers star Russell Westbrook isn’t concerned by his team’s sluggish start to the season, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com writes. Los Angeles has opened the campaign with two straight losses, including a home game against Phoenix on Friday in which the team trailed by as many as 32 points.

“I’m OK with adversity, honestly,” Westbrook said. “I never panic throughout the course of a season. Especially at the start of the season. There’s really no need to. The season is too long and nobody is winning nothing right now.

“Yes, it’s good to get off to a good start and feel good about yourself, but especially me personally, I like to make sure that I’m — as the season goes on — I’m constantly just getting better and better and better as the season prolongs. And making sure that my team and my teammates are getting better as well as we all get comfortable with each other.”

The Lakers traded for Westbrook this past offseason, forming a new big three alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Los Angeles also signed veterans such as Carmelo Anthony, Trevor Ariza, Rajon Rondo and Dwight Howard, adding more experience to the team.

There’s more out of Los Angeles tonight:

  • Speaking of a slow start, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue expected that the same would happen for his team, Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times writes. The Clippers are also 0-2, dropping contests to the Warriors and Grizzlies. The team will host Portland on Monday and Cleveland on Wednesday. “Our first unit has to do a better job of setting the tone defensively, having a defensive mindset,” Lue said. “I don’t think we’re there right now, we’re not there yet. But it’s coming. And with guys being out for most of preseason and in and out, that’s to be expected. But we got to have the mindset and approach that we want to get stops coming out of the first and third quarter.”
  • The Lakers are beginning the process of evaluating their own problems, Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times writes. The team has dealt with various chemistry, injury and defensive issues to start the campaign, but 80 games are left to address said issues before the postseason.
  • Be sure to check out our team pages on the Lakers and Clippers for more on Los Angeles’ two teams.

Lakers Notes: Vogel, Westbrook, Reaves, Ellington

Lakers coach Frank Vogel believes fans and the media are overreacting to an 0-2 start, writes Bill Oram of The Athletic. Friday night was particularly bad for L.A. as the team was blown out by the Suns in a game that saw Anthony Davis and Dwight Howard get into a sideline altercation, Rajon Rondo have a dispute with a courtside fan, and Vogel receive a technical foul after running onto the court to question a call.

“We’re just disappointed that we’re not winning, that’s all,” Vogel said. “Look, these are some of the greatest players ever to play because of their competitive spirit. If you don’t win, there’s going to be frustration. That’s what makes them great.”

The Lakers are still learning to play together after having the largest roster turnover in the league during the offseason, with just three players remaining from last year’s team. They added a group of former All-Stars, but there are concerns that the roster is too old and doesn’t fit well together. Oram suggests that Friday’s performance reflects a lack of discipline as well.

“I think that can get overly blown when you lose a game,” LeBron James told reporters. “You have some techs here, you see an altercation. You start saying, ‘OK, these guys are ultimately … the whole thing’s frustration.’ Well, we’re competitors. If you don’t get mad at certain things on the floor that you feel like you should have done better, then what are you here for?”

There’s more on the Lakers:

  • Russell Westbrook was significantly better on Friday than he was in the season opener, per Jovan Buha of The Athletic. Westbrook put up familiar statistics with 15 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists and was able to drive to the rim several times. L.A. played without a center for part of the fourth quarter, and Buha expects Vogel to continue to experiment with lineups to find the best combination to go with Westbrook.
  • Austin Reaves helped the Lakers rally in the fourth quarter and is making a bid to be part of the regular rotation, Buha adds. The rookie guard gives the offense another play-maker and a three-point threat. “We’re learning about our team,” Vogel said. “Gave some of the other wings a chance, the first chance. Weren’t getting much done as a group in the first three quarters, and as a coach, when you’re down big, you try to change the game with a small lineup and a different guy at the wing. And Austin came in and played really well.”
  • Wayne Ellington‘s season debut will be delayed at least one more game, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Ellington has been ruled out for Sunday’s contest with a strained hamstring, but the team hopes he’ll be available sometime during the coming week.

Western Notes: Howard, Davis, Mitchell, Doncic, Dragic, Beverley

Dwight Howard tried to downplay his altercation with Anthony Davis during the Lakers’ loss to Phoenix on Friday night, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN. The two big man had a verbal exchange on the bench during the second quarter.

“We squashed it right then and there,” Howard said. “We just had a disagreement about something that was on the floor. We’re both very passionate about winning.”

Davis said of the spat, “it’s over with.” Howard is one of many Lakers bench players signed to a one-year, veteran’s minimum contract.

We have more from the Western Conference:

  • The Kings surprised a lot of people when they drafted a guard, Davion Mitchell, in the lottery for the second straight year, but Mitchell is already making an impression with his ball-hawking defense, Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee tweets. Swingman Buddy Hield has high praise for the rookie. “I think he’s the best on-ball defender in the league,” he said. “The way he hawks the ball is different. His lateral movement. The way he closes out is different. It’s just a special gift he has.”
  • The Mavericks will play Toronto on Saturday in a matchup of Luka Doncic and Goran Dragic at the point. The Slovenian national team members could soon join forces in the NBA, Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News notes. There were rumors swirling during the offseason after Dragic was traded to the Raptors that he could eventually wind up in Dallas. That could happen closer to the trade deadline or perhaps next summer, when Dragic becomes a free agent.
  • Patrick Beverley will make his Timberwolves debut on Saturday after serving a one-game league suspension. He’s says his impact on the young Minnesota roster will go beyond the stat sheet, Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune writes. “Born leader, came natural for me since I was a kid, very outspoken,” Beverley said. “Even some of my ex-Clippers guards, teammates [Thursday] night after their loss to Golden State, they called me and we chopped it up a little bit. I always have a good positive spirit, positive energy. That just kind of rubs off on people every night.”

Pacific Notes: Anthony, Fizdale, Bradley, Bjelica

When he joined the Lakers, Carmelo Anthony knew he’d be coming off the bench, just like he did last season with the Trail Blazers. Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times wonders if Anthony might be a candidate for the Sixth Man of the Year award this season.

For his part, Anthony is more focused on team success than individual accolades at this point in his career.

[It’s] understanding what I have to do in those roles in order to help this team,” Anthony said. “So, in my mind, it’s not about winning the Sixth Man of the Year award. It’s about being the best sixth man for our team, if that’s the case. Knowing that, I have something to look forward to night in and night out, knowing that I got to come in fully prepared and ready to go.

I think having that mentality kind of forces you or pushes you to play at a high level every night. Right?” Anthony said. “And not look in front of you or besides you and say, ‘I got so-and-so, I got this, I got that, I got that.‘”

Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Lakers assistant coach David Fizdale is back home in Los Angeles and happy to be there, according to Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group. Goon takes an in-depth look at the veteran coach, who grew up in the L.A. area rooting for the Lakers.
  • Avery Bradley, whom the Lakers claimed off waivers, recently opened up to Bill Oram of The Athletic about missing the team’s title run during the 2019/20 season. Bradley wanted to be with the club, but chose to opt out of the bubble to protect his son, who had a severe case of pneumonia in 2019. “We play this game for our family,” Bradley said. “Of course I love the game of basketball. That’s how I take care of my family is this game. It would be backwards if I didn’t focus on my family first.” The interview is worth reading in full.
  • The Warriors‘ Bob Myers recently stated that the team tried to trade for free agent acquisition Nemanja Bjelica last season, writes Alex Didion of NBC Sports Bay Area. “We tried to trade for him a few times last year and just couldn’t find the right deal for (the Kings) and us, and then he got moved to Miami and never really got a foothold there,” Myers said Thursday morning on 95.7 The Game. “We’ve always liked him because we thought he could fit what we do, which is what you guys see, it’s a lot of read and react stuff, lot of randomness.

Kendrick Nunn To Miss Multiple Weeks With Bone Bruise

Lakers guard Kendrick Nunn has been diagnosed with a bone bruise in his right knee and he’ll be out multiple weeks, coach Frank Vogel told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin and other members after Thursday’s practice (Twitter link).

Nunn dealt with an ankle sprain in the same leg during training camp, though the club was hopeful he’d be back by opening night. He had an MRI on the knee after experiencing some soreness and it revealed the bruise. He’ll be re-evaluated in about two or three weeks, according to Vogel.

Nunn signed a two-year contract with Los Angeles after Miami pulled its qualifying offer to him, making him an unrestricted free agent in August. Nunn reportedly turned down more money from the Knicks and other suitors in order to join the Lakers. Nunn was projected to be Russell Westbrook‘s primary backup at the point, along with seeing some minutes at the shooting guard spot.

His absence will thrust veteran Rajon Rondo into the backup point guard role and newly-acquired Avery Bradley could also see action there. Wayne Ellington has been ruled out of Friday’s game against Phoenix with a hamstring injury, McMenamin adds.

Lakers Notes: James, Bradley, Westbrook, Defense

LeBron James isn’t a fan of load management and believes he’s better off playing heavy minutes, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin writes. James missed 26 games last season due to a high ankle sprain. “I don’t play the game thinking about injuries,” James said. “And I also feel worse when I play low minutes.”

Coach Frank Vogel said that he still plans to give James some nights off this season.

“Obviously, it’s probably don’t want to have him play 82 games,” Vogel said. “But we’re not going to pre-script X amount of nights off. We’re going to take it as it comes throughout the year.”

We have more on the Lakers:

  • Avery Bradley didn’t participate in the Orlando bubble in 2020 in his last stint with the Lakers. There are no hard feelings lingering from that decision now that Bradley is back in a Lakers uniform, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register writes. “We’re welcoming him back with open arms,” Vogel said. The Lakers claimed Bradley off waivers from the Warriors on Monday.
  • Russell Westbrook made an ugly Lakers debut in their loss to Golden State on Tuesday, contributing just eight points on 4-for-13 shooting while making four turnovers. His superstar teammates don’t want Westbrook to dwell on his disappointing opening-night performance, McMenamin relays in a separate story. “We said some things to him, and he smiled and things like that, so I expect him to be better in the game Friday,” Anthony Davis said.
  • Not only will it take time for Westbrook to build chemistry with the team’s other stars but the rotation members will also need time to develop at the defensive end, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today notes. Zillgitt points out that three of the team’s best defenders are gone, either via the Westbrook trade or free agency.

NBA Teams With Most, Least Roster Continuity

Over the last several months, dozens of NBA players have changed teams via free agency, dozens more have entered or exited the league, and a total of 35 trades have been made. After all that offseason activity, some teams will enter the 2021/22 season looking totally different than they did in the spring, while others will look pretty similar to last season’s squads.

While roster continuity is generally perceived as a sign of stability, carrying over a significant number of players from last year’s team doesn’t necessarily give a club a leg up entering a new season.

Heading into the 2020/21 season, for instance, the Pacers, Bulls, Spurs, and Magic were among the teams with the most roster continuity, but it didn’t help them make the playoffs. The Celtics and Heat were in that group too, and both clubs underachieved. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Sixers and Bucks were among the four teams with the most roster turnover — Philadelphia claimed the No. 1 seed in the East and Milwaukee won the title.

Entering the 2021/22 campaign, the Nuggets and Kings are the two teams bringing back the most players from last year’s end-of-season rosters (including two-way players), while the Lakers are – by a wide margin – the team that experienced the most roster turnover.

The Lakers are bringing back just three players from last year’s team, while no other club retained than fewer than seven players. Perhaps the fact that so many of L.A.’s newly-added players have prior experience with the team will help ease the transition this fall — three of the players who rejoined the Lakers this offseason (Dwight Howard, Rajon Rondo, and Avery Bradley) were part of the team that won a title in the Orlando bubble just over a year ago.

Here’s the total number of returning players for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, from most to fewest:

  1. Denver Nuggets: 14
  2. Sacramento Kings: 13
  3. Atlanta Hawks: 12
    Orlando Magic: 12
  4. Dallas Mavericks: 11
    Indiana Pacers: 11
    Memphis Grizzlies: 11
    Miami Heat: 11
    Minnesota Timberwolves: 11
    Philadelphia 76ers: 11
    Phoenix Suns: 11
    Utah Jazz: 11
  5. Detroit Pistons: 10
    Golden State Warriors: 10
    Houston Rockets: 10
    Los Angeles Clippers: 10
    New York Knicks: 10
    Oklahoma City Thunder: 10
  6. Charlotte Hornets: 9
    Cleveland Cavaliers: 9
    Milwaukee Bucks: 9
    New Orleans Pelicans: 9
    Portland Trail Blazers: 9
    San Antonio Spurs: 9
    Washington Wizards: 9
  7. Boston Celtics: 8
    Toronto Raptors: 8
  8. Brooklyn Nets: 7 (*)
    Chicago Bulls: 7
  9. Los Angeles Lakers: 3

* The Nets’ count includes Kyrie Irving, since he technically remains on the roster; it doesn’t include LaMarcus Aldridge, who last played for Brooklyn but didn’t finish the season with the team.

Cap/Contract Notes: Taxpayers, Allen, Carter, Shamet, Gafford

Now that all 30 regular season rosters have been set, 10 teams project to be taxpayers, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. The Warriors, Nets, Clippers, Lakers, Bucks, Jazz, Sixers, Celtics, Trail Blazers, and Raptors are currently over the luxury tax threshold.

Some of those teams are in better shape than others. While the Warriors ($159.9MM) and Nets ($110.4MM) project to have nine-figure tax bills, the Raptors are barely into tax territory and should be able to sneak below the line, perhaps by waiving one of their two players who have partially guaranteed deals.

Besides Golden State and Brooklyn, the Clippers, Lakers, Bucks, and Jazz all have projected tax bills exceeding $33MM, according to Marks. The Sixers, Celtics, Blazers, and Raptors would owe less than $8MM each based on the current numbers.

Of course, these numbers can and will change over the course of the season as teams make roster moves, since tax bills are determined by the team’s year-end salary. For now though, the 20 non-taxpayers project to receive year-end payments of $12.7MM, Marks notes.

Here are a few more cap- and contract-related notes from around the NBA:

  • Grayson Allen‘s two-year extension with the Bucks features a base value of $17MM ($8.5MM per year) in guaranteed money, plus incentives, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. The exact value of the incentives is $1.275MM annually, Hoops Rumors has learned. Currently, those are a mix of likely and unlikely bonuses, but since the deal doesn’t begin until 2022/23, those likely/unlikely designations will ultimately be based on what happens this coming season.
  • Wendell Carter Jr.‘s four-year extension with the Magic has a descending structure, Scotto tweets. It starts at $14.15MM in year one and dips to $10.85MM by year four. The deal is fully guaranteed, with no options.
  • In addition to having a team option on its fourth year, Landry Shamet‘s extension with the Suns has a non-guaranteed salary in year three, Hoops Rumors has learned. The last two years both have June 29 trigger dates, in 2024 and 2025. Only $19.75MM of Shamet’s $42.5MM deal is fully guaranteed for now.
  • Daniel Gafford‘s three-year extension with the Wizards doesn’t include any options or incentives, tweets John Hollinger of The Athletic.

2021 NBA Offseason In Review: Los Angeles Lakers

Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2021 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s offseason moves, examine what still needs to be done before opening night, and look ahead to what the 2021/22 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Los Angeles Lakers.


Free agent signings:

Note: Exhibit 9 and 10 deals aren’t included here.

  • Talen Horton-Tucker: Three years, $30.78MM. Third-year player option. Re-signed using Early Bird rights.
  • Kendrick Nunn: Two years, $10.25MM. Second-year player option. Signed using taxpayer mid-level exception.
  • Carmelo Anthony: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Trevor Ariza: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Kent Bazemore: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Wayne Ellington: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Dwight Howard: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • DeAndre Jordan: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Malik Monk: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Rajon Rondo: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Austin Reaves: Two-way contract. Later signed to two-year, minimum-salary contract. First year partially guaranteed. Second year non-guaranteed.
  • Sekou Doumbouya: Two-way contract.
  • Jay Huff: Two-way contract.

Trades:

  • Acquired Russell Westbrook, the Bulls’ 2023 second-round pick (from Wizards), either the Wizards’ or Grizzlies’ 2024 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable; from Wizards), and the Wizards’ 2028 second-round pick in a five-team trade in exchange for Kyle Kuzma (to Wizards), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (to Wizards), Montrezl Harrell (to Wizards), and the draft rights to Isaiah Jackson (No. 22 pick; to Pacers).
  • Acquired the draft rights to Wang Zhelin from the Grizzlies in exchange for Marc Gasol, the Lakers’ 2024 second-round pick, and cash ($250K).

Draft picks:

  • None

Contract extensions:

  • None

Waiver claims:

Departing players:

Other offseason news:

  • Trevor Ariza underwent an arthroscopic debridement procedure on his right ankle and will miss the start of the season.
  • Talen Horton-Tucker underwent right thumb surgery and will miss the start of the season.
  • Signed head coach Frank Vogel to a one-year extension.
  • Hired David Fizdale and John Lucas III as assistant coaches; lost assistant coaches Jason Kidd and Lionel Hollins.
  • Mark Walter and Todd Boehly bought a 27% stake in the franchise.

Salary cap situation:

  • Remained over the cap and above the tax line.
  • Carrying approximately $154.5MM in salary.
  • $890,000 of non-taxpayer mid-level exception still available ($5MM used on Kendrick Nunn).
  • One traded player exception ($2,692,991) available.

The Lakers’ offseason:

Shortly after the Lakers’ 2020/21 season came to a disappointing early end, general manager Rob Pelinka stated that his goal was to keep the majority of the team’s core together, suggesting that he believed last season’s group would have made a deeper postseason run with some better injury luck.

Four-and-a-half months later, no team has overhauled its roster more than the Lakers, who have just three players from last year’s squad returning for the 2021/22 season. Either Pelinka’s plans changed, he wasn’t telling the full truth when he spoke to reporters in June, or his definition of the team’s “core” was much narrowed than originally believed.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis will be back, of course, as will up-and-coming guard Talen Horton-Tucker, the only one of the Lakers’ many free agents to get a new deal from the team. Los Angeles essentially chose to invest in Horton-Tucker over fellow guards Dennis Schröder and Alex Caruso, betting on the 20-year-old’s upside and ability to continue improving. The three-year, $30.78MM deal he received as a restricted free agent was, by far, the largest deal the Lakers handed out this offseason.

Horton-Tucker’s new contract wasn’t the Lakers’ biggest transactions of the summer. That honor belongs to the five-team blockbuster trade that sent Russell Westbrook to his hometown of Los Angeles, with L.A. surrendering Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and the No. 22 overall pick in this year’s draft.

It was a fascinating decision for a team that had other options. The Lakers were reportedly far down the road with the Kings in discussions on a potential Buddy Hield trade that wouldn’t have had such a significant price tag. Reports at the time suggested the Lakers would’ve been able to hang onto Caldwell-Pope and possibly even the No. 22 pick if they’d been willing to send Kuzma and Harrell to Sacramento for Hield, whose cap hit is about half of Westbrook’s.

On paper, Hield – who is one of the NBA’s most talented shooters – would seem to be a better complementary piece for a team that could have prioritized surrounding its stars with floor spacers who don’t need the ball much. Westbrook is a far more ball-dominant player and a far less effective three-point shooter.

However, the Lakers weren’t interested in a complementary piece. They wanted another star who could take some of the play-making workload off of James and Davis and who could give the team some insurance in the event that either LeBron or AD deals with injuries again. You’d rather have Hield than Westbrook taking an open three with the game on the line, but the Lakers believed Westbrook’s ability to push the pace, attack defense, get to the rim, and make plays for his teammates will ultimately benefit the team more.

Having sacrificed some depth to acquire Westbrook – and having let all of their free agents except Horton-Tucker walk – the Lakers focused on finding reliable depth on the cheap. Young point guard Kendrick Nunn received a two-year, $10MM commitment using most of L.A.’s taxpayer mid-level exception, but every other veteran signed by the team this summer got a minimum-salary deal.

That list of minimum-salary veterans consists of Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Rajon Rondo, DeAndre Jordan, Kent Bazemore, Malik Monk, Trevor Ariza, and Wayne Ellington, with undrafted rookie Austin Reaves filling out the roster on a minimum deal of his own.

Anthony, Howard, and Rondo are potential Hall-of-Famers who have accepted limited roles in recent years. Their willingness to buy in and be complementary players is great, but they’re all 35 or older and shouldn’t be leaned on for big minutes.

Ariza is another player in that 35-or-older group, and he’s already dealing with an ankle injury that will sideline him for several weeks to open the season. Jordan is still a solid rebounder and a decent defender in certain matchups, but will be played off the court in others. Ellington is a great shooter who doesn’t contribute a whole lot else.

Bazemore and Monk are two of Los Angeles’ more intriguing additions. Bazemore has been up and down in recent years, but if the Lakers get the good version of the three-and-D wing, he could end up playing a pretty major role. Monk, meanwhile, finally had a modest breakout year in 2020/21, knocking down 40.1% of his three-pointers in Charlotte. He’ll get the chance to prove the progress he made was for real.

The Lakers have constructed one of the more top-heavy rosters in the NBA, with James, Davis, and Westbrook earning nearly $121MM this season, while nine of the team’s 11 other players are on minimum-salary contracts. That will make it difficult for the team to complete in-season trades, so L.A. will have to hope that this group stays healthy and that four or five of those minimum guys can be relied upon for productive regular minutes.


The Lakers’ upcoming season:

Any team with James and Davis on its roster is a legitimate championship contender, though I’m not convinced that this year’s supporting cast is better than last year’s. The answer to that question will largely hinge on whether Westbrook’s fit is a comfortable one or an awkward one.

If the Lakers can make their Big Three work and keep those three stars relatively healthy, they should be able to get enough out of the other 11 guys to make this work. If the addition of Westbrook creates some spacing issues, or if Davis doesn’t adjust well to playing more at the five instead of the four, there could be cause for concern.

The Lakers won’t be my pick to win the 2022 Finals, but they’re a solid playoff team and one of the few NBA clubs with enough talent to compete for a title.


Salary information from Basketball Insiders and Spotrac was used in the creation of this post.

Lakers Claim Avery Bradley Off Waivers

The Lakers have reunited with another old friend, having claimed guard Avery Bradley off waivers, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Bradley was released by the Warriors on Saturday.

Bradley was part of the Lakers’ championship team in 2019/20, averaging 8.6 PPG and 2.3 RPG on .444/.364/.833 shooting in 49 games (24.2 MPG) for the club. He signed with the Heat last offseason, then was traded to Houston at the March trade deadline. The Rockets turned down Bradley’s team option for 2021/22 and he subsequently joined the Warriors for training camp.

Bradley failed to earn the 15th spot on Golden State’s regular season roster, but will become the latest veteran to rejoin the Lakers after spending time away from the team. Dwight Howard, Rajon Rondo, Trevor Ariza, Wayne Ellington, and Kent Bazemore are among the others who fit that bill. Howard and Rondo, like Bradley, were members of the 2020 championship team.

The Lakers, who signed Jay Huff to a two-way contract earlier today, now have a full 17-man roster for the regular season. However, Bradley’s deal is non-guaranteed and Austin Reaves only has a small partial guarantee, so the team has the flexibility to make some changes in the coming days, weeks, or months, if necessary.