The Los Angeles Lakers failed to bring in a big-name free agent once again this past summer. Four-time NBA All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge appeared to be seriously considering signing with the Lakers in free agency, but wasn’t thrilled with their pitch that failed to focus on the basketball side of things.
Ultimately, Aldridge signed with the San Antonio Spurs and the Lakers were left with limited options in free agency. The weak pitch made by the front office was a major wake-up call for the organization and something that head coach Byron Scott claims will change drastically moving forward.
According to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times, Coach Scott vows to change the team’s pitch in free agency with much more focus on basketball:
“Most of these guys want to know the basketball part of it. We’ll change that part as far as most of the meeting, 75% of it or more, will be about the basketball part and then the other part will be a little bit about the business part,” Scott said. “I think we found from a great player that he was more interested in the basketball on-the-court stuff than anything else.”
The new pitch will be put to the test next summer with superstar Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder hitting the free agent market. It’s highly likely the Lakers brass will do everything within their power to lure Durant to Los Angeles next summer and may have a good chance of doing if intent on changing the pitch to focus on basketball rather than the business side.
Signing Durant would be a game-changing move for the Lakers as it would instantly turn the team into a legitimate playoff contender in the Western Conference for years to come. If the pitch falls short again, the rebuilding process continues with the team relying strictly on the development of D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle, and Jordan Clarkson.