After plenty of speculation circulated around the league that the Los Angeles Lakers were on the verge of trading numerous players before the deadline, the storied franchise dealt Steve Blake to the Golden State Warriors and failed to make another moves.
As a result of no other deals outside of Blake heading to the Bay Area, the Lakers were considered to be one of the most disappointing teams in terms of not being able to get much done with numerous expiring deals on the books.
Despite the lack of trades before the deadline, GM Mitch Kupchak has stressed that there is a plan in place moving forward. That plan may include luring in Kevin Love and Kevin Durant in free agency in the summers of 2015 and 2016 according to Mike Bresnahan of the L.A. Times:
They do like Cleveland forward Luol Deng but don’t want to overpay for him this summer, meaning their eyes are firmly on Kevin Love in July 2015 and Kevin Durant in 2016.
As of right now, Luol Deng, Kyle Lowry and possibly Carmelo Anthony will be the best available players in free agency this July. Outside of Anthony, none of these players are potential game-changers for the Lakers and it appears the Lakers aren’t even sold on signing Anthony either according to Bresnahan:
The Lakers are not interested in possible free agent Carmelo Anthony, who claims he won’t break the New York Knicks’ bank to stay with them. The Lakers also aren’t looking intently at point guard Kyle Lowry, who becomes a free agent this summer, according to a person familiar with the situation.
With that being said, there’s a very good chance the Lakers only make a handful of moves to fill the roster this summer. Kupchak and company don’t seem ready to break the bank for any players that will be available outside of LeBron James. The four-time NBA MVP leaving the Miami Heat to come to Los Angeles is a stretch to say the least at this point.
Although no major moves seem to be on the horizon this summer, the plan remains in place for 2015 and 2016 with Love and Durant potentially in Kupchak’s crosshairs.
________________________________________________________________________________
Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak On Steve Nash’s, Pau Gasol’s And Nick Young’s Future