Now two days into free agency, the Los Angeles Lakers have yet to make any signing, which has many questioning what their plan is.
L.A.’s attention was on Klay Thompson when free agency opened but unfortunately he instead chose to sign with the Dallas Mavericks. Now looking to pivot to other options, one name who has come up is DeMar DeRozan.
With LeBron James being open to a pay cut, general manager Rob Pelinka is trying to take advantage of this opportunity. With Thompson, Jonas Valanciunas and James Harden off the board, DeRozan is at the forefront as limited options remain.
It seems Chicago is willing to aid DeRozan in finding a new home as K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago is reporting that the Lakers’ interest is real and the Bulls are willing to talk about sign-and-trades:
The Lakers’ interest is genuine, and the Bulls are open to sign-and-trade possibilities, sources confirmed. But any sign-and-trade would have to be for at least three years and at less annual salary than what DeRozan wants.
Thus, a potential scenario is DeRozan playing next season—possibly with the Lakers—on the $12.8 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception and then re-entering unrestricted free agency next offseason.
Ideally, the Lakers would like to acquire the Compton native with that mid-level exception of $12.9 million so no assets are sacrificed. If that does happen, L.A. could flip those assets to bring in a 3-and-D wing or a big to lessen Anthony Davis’ defensive workload.
For the past couple of years, DeRozan has made it known that he wants to play for his hometown Lakers. Dating back to the 2021 offseason, he thought he was coming to L.A. before Rob Pelinka shifted to trading for Russell Westbrook, which obviously turned out to be the wrong move.
Perhaps this time both parties can come to an agreement, becoming the first big domino to fall for the Lakers this offseason.
LeBron James would take pay cut for DeMar DeRozan
After suffering a first-round exit, there has been discussion on how drastic of changes need to be made to this Lakers roster. However, LeBron James is willing to take a pay cut for the first time in his career to help this team get back into contention.
James isn’t willing to take less for just anyone but DeRozan is one of the few he would be willing to for should he ultimately want to come to L.A.
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