- Lakers star LeBron James, who ranks fourth in the NBA this season in total minutes played, will sit out the second half of the team’s back-to-back set on Wednesday, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, James will receive treatment on his left ankle, but like Doncic, he expects to play in Sunday’s All-Star Game.
Lakers center Marc Gasol was inactive on Tuesday after being placed under the league’s health and safety protocols, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register tweets. Gasol had started all 35 games this season prior to Tuesday, posting modest stats of 4.8 PPG and 4.1 RPG. Gasol was signed to a two-year, $5.25MM contract in November.
The Lakers have superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis locked up to long-term contracts, but will face some challenges during the 2021 offseason as they look to retain some of their key role players, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN.
One of those players is Alex Caruso, who will be an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career (he re-signed with the Lakers as a restricted FA in 2019). While Caruso’s numbers (5.8 PPG, 2.4 APG) are relatively modest, he’s a solid 3-point shooter (38.8%) and a capable defender who will be hitting the open market in his prime at age 27.
Caruso is expected to have suitors, according to Windhorst, who says some league executives think the veteran guard’s market could be in the neighborhood of the full, non-taxpayer mid-level exception, which will be worth around $9.5MM.
While I’d be surprised if Caruso got the full MLE from a rival team, there certainly may be clubs looking to put pressure on the Lakers by poaching away some of their rotation players, which could result in some higher offers than expected.
Let’s round up a few more Lakers notes…
- Second-year wing Talen Horton-Tucker is another player whom teams may compete over during the 2021 free agent period, per Windhorst. “He’s a gifted defender with great length and great upside who’s just 20 years old,” one Eastern Conference executive told ESPN. “In this market, that’s exactly the type of player you want to chase.” Horton-Tucker will be a restricted free agent who will be subject to the Arenas provision, meaning a rival suitor could put pressure on the Lakers by offering him a backloaded three- or four-year deal.
- The extend-and-trade restrictions that limited Dennis Schröder‘s ability to sign a longer-term extension before he reaches free agency have lifted, so it’s safe to assume he and the Lakers will explore a new deal. Windhorst identifies Dejounte Murray (four years, $64MM), Bogdan Bogdanovic (four years, $72MM), and Fred VanVleet (four years, $85MM) as some potential points of comparison for the Schröder negotiations.
- Veteran center Damian Jones looked good in his first appearance as a Laker on Sunday, recording eight points, three rebounds, and two blocks in eight minutes of action in a blowout win over Golden State. Jones, who is on a 10-day contract, is auditioning for a longer look with the team, as Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register writes. “I think he’s got a shot to be here (longer) if he can just do what he did out there,” Kyle Kuzma said of Jones.
- Lakers assistant coach Lionel Hollins isn’t expected to return to the bench until after the All-Star break, according to Kyle Goon of the Southern California News Group (Twitter link). Hollins, a former NBA head coach, has missed the past four games due to personal reasons.
Throughout the season, Hoops Rumors takes a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents this off-season. We examine if their stock is rising or falling due to performance and other factors. This week, we take a look at players from the Pacific Division:
Kelly Oubre, Warriors, 25, SF (Up) – Signed to a two-year, $30MM deal in 2019
The Warriors were willing to explode their luxury tax bill by using a $17.2MM trade exception to acquire Oubre. Initially, it looked like a colossal waste of money. He got off to a woeful start, missing 28 of his first 30 3-point attempts. Oubre has settled in this month, doing what he does best – providing offensive punch while helping out around the boards. He’s averaging 20.5 PPG and 6.5 RPG and shooting 44% from long range in February. Productive wings are always in demand and Oubre – though his perimeter shot is still inconsistent — should be able to attract offers similar to the one he signed two years ago with the Suns.
Markieff Morris, Lakers, 31, PF (Down) – Signed to a one-year, $2.33MM deal in 2020
Morris had his contract bought out by the Pistons last season in order to join a contender. He made a good choice, giving the Lakers some rotation minutes during their championship run. He re-upped with the Lakers this offseason and has retained his rotation role. Morris’ playing time has recently increased in Anthony Davis’ absence, but he hasn’t moved the needle. He’s shooting 38.9% from the field and 30.4% from deep after making 39.7% of his 3s for Detroit last season. It’s quite possible that Morris will see his playing time evaporate when Davis returns and/or the Lakers add a frontcourt piece.
Langston Galloway, Suns, 29, SG (Down) – Signed to a one-year, $2MM deal in 2020
When Galloway signed with Phoenix for the veteran’s minimum, it initially appeared like one of the better under-the-radar moves of the offseason. It hasn’t worked out that way. At the moment, Galloway is under wraps. He was coming off a strong season for the Pistons, averaging 10.3 PPG off the bench while shooting 39.9% from the field and playing solid defense as well. With the Suns, Galloway finds himself out of the rotation with E’Twaun Moore absorbing most of the backup guard minutes. Galloway could still make his mark on a playoff team at some point.
Jabari Parker, Kings, 25, SF (Down) – Signed to a two-year, $13MM deal in 2019
Imagine if the Bucks had selected Joel Embiid in 2014 and waited out his foot injuries. Alas, Milwaukee chose Parker and missed out on a potential superstar pairing with Giannis Antetokounmpo. Parker is on his fifth NBA team, though if you weren’t aware that he’s on Sacramento’s roster, it’s perfectly understandable. Due to a back injury, personal reasons, and now COVID-19 protocols, Parker has appeared in just two games this season. He’s still young enough to reestablish himself as an instant-offense reserve but he’ll probably be looking at veteran’s minimum deals in free agency.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
- After missing four games due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, Lakers guard Dennis Schröder has been cleared to return and is back in the starting lineup on Friday night, tweets Jovan Buha of The Athletic.
The Lakers have signed center Damian Jones to a 10-day contract, ESPN’s Marc Spears relays via a team press release. The team had two open roster spots after waiving Quinn Cook on Wednesday.
Jones was waived by the Suns on Wednesday. He signed a partially-guaranteed two-year deal with Phoenix during the 2020 offseason but played just 6.7 minutes per game in 14 contests.
The 6’11” big man was selected with the No. 30 pick in the 2016 NBA draft by the Warriors out of Vanderbilt. He won two titles with Golden State in 2017 and 2018 as a little-used backup, then played significant minutes as a reserve with the Hawks during the 2019/20 season, averaging 16.1 MPG across 55 games (including 27 starts). Jones holds career NBA averages of 4.3 PPG, 2.8 RPG, and 0.7 BPG in 13.3 MPG across parts of five NBA seasons.
Jones provides a little more depth up front with Anthony Davis sidelined by a calf injury. His 10-day deal will cover the rest of the season’s first half, paying him approximately $119K.
Veteran big man Anthony Davis recently chatted with Bill Oram of The Athletic to discuss the strained right calf that will keep him off the floor for the Lakers for the next several weeks, as well as his efforts to serve as a de facto coach as he travels with the club.
“Something might happen while a player is in the game and they want to see it to see how they can adjust,” the Lakers’ All-Star forward/center said. “And so that’s kind of my job. I see something on the floor, I kind of use the iPad and film because film never lies.”
Davis also addressed his progress in his recovery from the calf injury. He could return to the court for the Lakers by mid-March at the earliest. “(Physical therapy) stuff on it every day,” he said. “Nothing too crazy, but a lot of stuff in the weight room.”
- Lakers head coach Frank Vogel is holding out hope that starting point guard Dennis Schröder can clear the COVID-19 protocols that have sidelined him since last week in time for tomorrow’s game against the Trail Blazers, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register tweets. Schröder has been held out for each of the Lakers’ last four games, all losses.
- As the Lakers battle through a season-worst four-game losing skid (thanks in part to the absences of Davis and Schröder), the champs are hoping the experience will toughen them ahead of the coming postseason, according to Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register.
FEBRUARY 24: The Lakers have officially released Cook, the team announced today in a press release. He’s now on track to clear waivers on Friday, while L.A. will carry a cap hit of about $797K if he goes unclaimed.
FEBRUARY 23: The Lakers are waiving veteran guard Quinn Cook, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The move will leave the team with a pair of open spots on its 15-man roster.
Cook, who will turn 28 in a month, averaged 11.5 minutes per game in 44 regular season games for the Lakers last season, but has played even less of a role in 2020/21, logging just 62 total minutes in 16 appearances. He has played double-digit minutes just once.
As Charania explains (via Twitter), the Lakers valued Cook, but wanted to gain some extra roster and cap flexibility for possible upcoming moves, and his non-guaranteed contract made him the obvious roster casualty. Wednesday is the deadline for teams to waive a player on a non-guaranteed deal and avoid paying them his full-season salary.
Assuming Cook is officially released on Tuesday, his cap hit will dip from $1.62MM to about $785K, creating a little extra breathing room below the hard cap for Los Angeles. The Lakers will have up to two weeks to fill at least one of their two open roster spots to get back to the league-mandated minimum of 14 players on standard contracts, but could do so temporarily with a 10-day signing.
With two open roster spots, the Lakers will have some options on the trade market, but may ultimately focus on the post-deadline buyout market, as the defending champs will be a compelling destination for the top players who reach free agency.
Cook, meanwhile, would clear waivers and become an unrestricted free agent on Thursday if he goes unclaimed. According to Charania, the former Duke standout is expected to draw some interest around the league.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
- Jovan Buha of The Athletic explores how waiving Quinn Cook gives the Lakers even more options on the buyout market, while Dan Woike and Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times identify Kings center Hassan Whiteside as one frontcourt player the team could pursue either via trade or buyout.