Los Angeles Lakers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Cavaliers Notes: Love, Lue, James, Zizic

July 8th, 2018 at 9:08am CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Love has a chance to raise his trade value by the February deadline, which may explain why the Cavaliers aren’t putting him on the market now, writes Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com. GM Koby Altman said this week that the organization “doesn’t get better” by moving Love, and a rival executive that Pluto talked to agrees.

With LeBron James gone, Love will become the new focus of the offense in Cleveland and he has a good chance to raise the numbers of 17.6PPG and 9.0 RPG that earned him an All-Star berth this season. He also stretches opposing defense, which will give Jordan Clarkson and rookie point guard Collin Sexton easier paths to the rim.

Love will make $24MM in the upcoming season, then has a $25.6MM salary for 2019/20 that he is expected to opt out of, so the Cavaliers will likely decide to trade him at some point. The unidentified executive says he could be very popular around the deadline, especially in the Eastern Conference, where teams will see a wide open field with James now a Laker.

There’s more this morning out of Cleveland:

The Heat, Hornets, Trail Blazers and Raptors stand out as potential trade destinations for Love, according to Frank Urbina of Hoops Hype.
Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue will meet with Lakers coach Luke Walton and associate head coach Brian Shaw to discuss the experience of coaching James, according to Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times. “I’ll just tell them LeBron’s easy,” Lue said. “People get this whole thing built up like he’s hard to coach. It’s not. LeBron’s not the problem. It’s the outside tension that’s the problem. Just put added pressure immediately on the coaches, on his teammates. Now everything you do is under a microscope. … So it’s going to be a totally different change for the Lakers. They’ll be able to handle it.” Lue adds that he spoke to James a number of times while he was making his free agency decision, but never pressed him to stay in Cleveland.
Pluto examines James’ legacy with the Cavaliers in a separate story. Through all he has accomplished, the enduring memory for James may be bringing an NBA championship to Cleveland. “Only people who are from there understand what that title meant,” said former Cavs coach Mike Brown. “To LeBron, I bet it’s worth more than all his MVP awards [four] and his other titles [in Miami] combined.”
Ante Zizic, an overlooked part of the Kyrie Irving trade, has been putting up huge numbers in the Las Vegas Summer League, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. He posted 25 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday’s loss to the Bulls.

Latest On Kawhi Leonard

July 7th, 2018 at 6:15pm CST by Arthur Hill

Tony Parker‘s decision to sign with the Hornets won’t change Kawhi Leonard‘s desire to leave San Antonio, tweets Jordan Schultz of Yahoo Sports. Schultz notes that Leonard “remains irate” with Parker over what he considers a downplaying of his quad injury. However, the locker room dysfunction goes beyond the relationship between Leonard and Parker, Schultz adds.

A rival GM tells Schultz that the Spurs haven’t relented at all on their asking price for Leonard (Twitter link). The organization doesn’t care if Leonard is unhappy in San Antonio and is refusing to consider reduced offers to resolve the situation. Schultz speculates that the Leonard trade drama could last through most of the summer, just as Carmelo Anthony‘s did a year ago.

There’s more news on Leonard to pass along:

Parker tells Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated that his reported feud with Leonard was blown out of proportion. “I have no problem with Kawhi Leonard,” Parker said. “We never had an argument. When the journalist asked me if my injury was worse than Kawhi’s, I said yes because it was true. But that didn’t lessen the significance of his injury. He took over the franchise and I gave up the torch of the franchise willingly. It’s very sad that the media took one quote and made it sound like I didn’t want to play with him. He was the face of the franchise.”
If he gets traded to the Eastern Conference, the Sixers are the only team Leonard would consider re-signing with, ESPN’s Chris Haynes said in an appearance on The Jump. Los Angeles remains Leonard’s first choice, Haynes adds, but he would be open to a long-term deal in Philadelphia if he winds up there. He notes that Leonard would not be interested in a similar arrangement with the Celtics, who are another reported suitor.
ESPN’s Michael C. Wright is the latest observer to say that the Clippers have overtaken the Lakers as Leonard’s preferred destination. Speaking on his podcast, Wright says “someone who would know” tells him that Leonard doesn’t want to be “second fiddle” to LeBron James with the Lakers. Wright adds that the Spurs aren’t impressed with anything the Clippers have to offer in a potential trade.
Up to eight teams have done background work on a possible trade for Leonard, reports Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). The Lakers, Clippers, Sixers and Celtics have been most prominently mentioned in trade rumors, but Kyler states that others are weighing the risks of a potential “rental” deal.

Would Lakers Be Good Fit For Carmelo Anthony?

July 7th, 2018 at 11:59am CST by Luke Adams

ESPN’s Kevin Pelton explores whether Carmelo Anthony – who is headed for a split with the Thunder – would fit best with the Lakers, Heat, or Rockets, three teams said to be interested in his services.

Central Notes: Stephenson, Love, Polinsky, Evans

July 6th, 2018 at 11:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pacers offered a better contract to swingman Lance Stephenson than he received from the Lakers, Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard said on Friday (Twitter link via Mark Monteith). Stephenson agreed to a one-year, $4.5MM deal from the Lakers. A phone call from LeBron James influenced Stephenson’s decision to choose L.A., Monteith adds. However, the Pacers declined Stephenson’s team option of $4.36MM prior to free agency, so it seems odd Pritchard then turned around and offered more in the open market.

In other news around the Central Division:

The Cavs don’t plan on tanking or trading their top remaining player Kevin Love, Joe Vardon of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. GM Koby Altman said he’s intent on keeping the team competitive despite the loss of LeBron James. “Kevin is an All-Star and you don’t get better by moving Kevin,” Altman said. “Kevin’s been incredible for us for four years and he wants to be here, and to me that’s a big part for guys that are here and the guys that we’re gonna acquire, is that they want to be here and be a part of this new chapter and culture that we’re creating.”
The Pistons have hired Nets executive Gregg Polinsky as their director of player personnel, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Pistons senior advisor Ed Stefanski and Polinsky worked together in Brooklyn, Wojnarowski adds. Polinsky had the same title with the Nets but his role will expand in Detroit. Pat Garrity and Andrew Loomis, who were assistant GMs under former team president Stan Van Gundy, will continue in their roles, according to Rod Beard of the Detroit News. The Pistons could bring in another assistant GM to focus on analytics, Beard adds.
Tyreke Evans is content with coming off the bench for the Pacers, Monteith writes for the team’s website. Evans joined the Pacers on a one-year, $12MM deal. Pritchard didn’t have to coax Evans into being a sixth man. “Not one bit,” he said. “We told him, ‘Here’s your role, does that interest you?’ He said, ‘Yes, I’m in.’ I think in his mind he’s going, ‘Boy, I’ve been scoring a lot of points and doing a lot of good stuff against starters, this is going to be fun.'”
Tim Grgurich is likely to join Dwane Casey’s coaching staff with the Pistons, Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press tweets. Grgurich, 76, has a long career as an NBA assistant and most recently was a consultant with the Bucks.

Lakers Sign Rookie Forward Isaac Bonga

July 6th, 2018 at 6:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Lakers have signed second-round pick Isaac Bonga, according to a team press release. Bonga received a three-year contract, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets.

The Lakers acquired the No. 39 overall selection in a trade with the Sixers and used that pick on Bonga. When the selection was made, there was some speculation Bonga was a draft-and-stash prospect. The signing confirms that Bonga will at least be competing for a roster spot.

Bonga, 18, joins the Lakers from Fraport Skyliners in Germany. The 6’9” forward has played for the German National Team in qualifying rounds of the 2019 FIBA World Cup. He is expected to join the Lakers’ summer league team in Las Vegas.

Lakers Sign Rajon Rondo To One-Year Deal

July 6th, 2018 at 1:48pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 6: The Lakers have officially signed Rondo, the team announced today in a press release.

“We are thrilled to have Rajon bring his off-the-charts basketball IQ to the Lakers,” Pelinka said in a statement. “He has a proven ability to play at an elite level during playoff and championship runs, and that is a highly valued skill. Rajon is also respected around the NBA as an extremely hard worker and relentless competitor and that mentality is key to how we want build our roster.”

JULY 2: The Lakers continue to make noise on the free agent market, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that Rajon Rondo has agreed to a deal to join the club. Rondo will sign a one-year, $9MM deal with the Lakers, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.

Playing last season on a one-year, $3.3MM deal in New Orleans, Rondo was an important part of the Pelicans’ lineup, averaging 8.3 PPG, 8.2 APG, and 4.0 RPG and serving as one of the club’s veteran leaders. He increased those rates to 10.3 PPG, 12.2 APG, and 7.6 RPG during an impressive playoff run.

Rondo will join a Lakers roster that’s set to look much different in 2018/19 than it did last season. The team is surrounding LeBron James with a fascinating collection of veterans that includes Rondo, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Lance Stephenson, and JaVale McGee.

Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com (Twitter link) hears that communication between James and the Lakers is “strong,” so it’s safe to assume that he’s on board with all the moves the team is making.

Shelburne adds (via Twitter) that LeBron told the Lakers he likes Lonzo Ball‘s game and is excited to play with him, but assuming Ball isn’t traded, he figures to compete for playing time with Rondo. A source tells Shelburne (Twitter link) that the best man will win the point guard job for the Lakers, who are in win-now mode.

Having renounced Julius Randle, the Lakers had a projected $13.83MM in cap room to accommodate the Rondo deal, which will take up $9MM in space. That will leave the Lakers with about $5.67MM for now. The team could get up to $16.29MM in cap room by waiving and stretching Luol Deng, so we’ll see if Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka have another big move up their sleeves.

As for the Pelicans, they had wanted to bring back Rondo even after reaching an agreement to sign point guard Elfrid Payton. According to Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), New Orleans made Rondo an offer, but the Lakers’ proposal was “significantly better.”

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rockets, Heat, Lakers Expected To Have Interest In Carmelo Anthony

July 6th, 2018 at 1:18pm CST by Luke Adams

The Thunder intend to part ways with Carmelo Anthony this summer, whether that means trading him, waiving and stretching him, or buying him out and stretching him. With a trade considered a long shot, potential suitors for Anthony expect him to reach the open market, at which point he’ll likely be “pursued vigorously” by contending teams, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarwoski and Royce Young.

According to Wojnarowski and Young, the Rockets, Heat, and Lakers are among the teams expected to express interest in Anthony. Word of Houston’s interest was first tweeted by Marc Stein of The New York Times.

The Rockets have their $5.337MM taxpayer mid-level exception available and pursued Anthony last summer. Heading to Houston would allow Anthony to compete for a title and join old friend Chris Paul.

Anthony could also team up with a close friend in Los Angeles, with LeBron James poised to sign with the Lakers. L.A. still has about $5.6MM in cap room available, so the club would be able to offer Carmelo more than the minimum.

As for the Heat, they haven’t used any of their mid-level exception, so they’d be able to go up to $5.337MM, or perhaps even higher if they’re willing to hard-cap themselves. They might not be as close to title contention as the Rockets or Lakers, but the Heat could have a clearer path to a deep playoff run than L.A. at least, given how much more competitive the West will be. They’d also have a Banana-Boater on their roster if Dwyane Wade opts to return.

Recognizing that the Thunder will have to let him go at some point, Anthony may not be incentivized to surrender much money in a buyout agreement with Oklahoma City. However, if he knows he has a $5MM+ offer lined up with another team, it could push him to give up a little of his Thunder salary to accelerate the process.

Sixers Trade No. 39 Pick Isaac Bonga To Lakers

July 6th, 2018 at 12:05pm CST by clarkcrum

JULY 6: The Lakers and Sixers have officially completed a trade that was initially reported more than two weeks ago, the Lakers announced today in a press release. The draft rights for Isaac Bonga, the No. 39 pick in the draft, are headed from Philadelphia to Los Angeles in exchange for the Bulls’ 2019 second-round pick and cash.

JUNE 20: The Lakers will acquire the No. 39 selection in tomorrow night’s draft from the Sixers, league source tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The Lakers will send the Bulls‘ 2019 second-round pick and cash to the Sixers in return.

The 39th pick, originally owned by the Knicks, was acquired by the Sixers back in 2014 when the Knicks traded it and forward Travis Outlaw to the Sixers in exchange for forward Arnett Moultrie.

As noted by both Eric Pincus and Bobby Marks, this trade, as reported, can’t become official until the new salary cap year begins since the Sixers have already received the allotted $5.1MM in cash this season. As such, the Sixers will essentially be selecting a player for the Lakers tomorrow night.

Lakers' Options As Search For Second Star Continues

July 5th, 2018 at 10:08pm CST by Austin Kent

There’s pressure on the Lakers to get a second star, but it’s far from urgent, Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report writes. So long as the franchise continues to practice patience, they’ll remain flexible enough to have options.

Of course the Lakers could wait to see if a different trade for a star beckons, as reports suggest with Jimmy Butler and as is at least borderline conceivable with Damian Lillard.

An alternative to making a move this season would be giving center Brook Lopez the Lakers’ remaining $5.7MM of cap space on a one-year deal, retaining all of their young players in an audition to see who best fits with LeBron James, then going out shopping for a star next summer.

Lowe’s Latest: Kawhi, Sixers, Celtics, Scott, More

July 5th, 2018 at 3:12pm CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers have not made Markelle Fultz available in Kawhi Leonard trade talks with the Spurs, and the Celtics haven’t been willing to include Jaylen Brown in their discussions with San Antonio, ESPN’s Zach Lowe confirms in his latest article.

We’ve heard variations on Lowe’s report for the last week or two, with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (video link) recently suggesting that the Sixers don’t want to discuss Fultz, Joel Embiid, or Ben Simmons in Leonard talks, and adding that the Celtics’ top five players have been “off-limits” in negotiations with the Spurs — presumably, Woj was referring to Brown, Jayson Tatum, Kyrie Irving, Gordon Hayward, and Al Horford.

Lowe’s full piece on the Leonard situation features several more tidbits of note, including some items only tangentially related to a possible Leonard trade. Let’s round up the highlights…

LeBron James isn’t pressuring the Lakers to add a second star for now, according to Lowe, who says that James “has faith in the combined powers of his supernova talent and the Lakers brand.” LeBron also recognizes that Brandon Ingram has considerable upside and is aware that many star free agents could be on the market in 2019, Lowe notes.
Lowe classifies rumors that Jimmy Butler and Kyrie Irving want to play together as “credible chatter.” However, the Celtics remain confident that they’ll be able to re-sign Irving next year, per Lowe.
Details of Mike Scott‘s contract agreement with the Clippers have yet to surface, but Lowe indicates the deal will use part of the team’s mid-level exception rather than being a minimum-salary signing.
Lowe’s piece is worth checking out in full, particularly for a section in which he brainstorms hypothetical wild-card suitors for Leonard, exploring whether the Raptors, Trail Blazers, Wizards, Timberwolves, Thunder, Heat, Rockets, Bucks, Nuggets, Warriors, Pistons, or Kings might be fits — many are quick “no”s, but some generate some intriguing hypothetical deals.