With NBA free agency getting underway, the pressure is on Los Angeles Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka to make the necessary moves to improve the roster and get back into championship condition.
One person who is trying to help make his job easier is LeBron James, who is willing to take a pay cut if it leads to the Lakers landing an impact player. James even gave the Lakers a list of players he would be willing to do so for and that included James Harden, Klay Thompson and Jonas Valanciunas.
Harden was never a realistic option as he quickly agreed to a new deal with the L.A. Clippers. And now Valanciunas is also off the board after signing with the Washington Wizards, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:
Free agent center Jonas Valanciunas has agreed on a three-year, $30 million deal with the Washington Wizards, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/0XnEyWotOw
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2024
It’s no secret the Lakers would like to add to their frontcourt, but they will now have to seek other options to do so.
One other potential roster need for the Lakers is point guard and earlier in the offseason they were linked to Chris Paul, who was let go by the Golden State Warriors.
Paul felt like a natural possibility due to his connections to JJ Redick and James, but he is instead going to the San Antonio Spurs:
Free agent guard Chris Paul has agreed on a one-year, $11 million-plus deal with the San Antonio Spurs, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2024
The Lakers organization was said to be split on signing Paul and with him getting this deal from San Antonio, plus D’Angelo Russell deciding to opt in, it’s hard to look at this as a loss for L.A.
With free agency underway though, Pelinka still has a lot of work to do or else James will sign for his full max and the ability to improve will become much more difficult.
Lakers among teams to meet with Klay Thompson in free agency
The last name from LeBron James’ list that is still available is Klay Thompson and there is believed to be mutual interest there. The Lakers are among the teams that Thompson will meet with in free agency although the Dallas Mavericks are considered the favorite due to them potentially being able to offer him more money and a guaranteed starting spot.
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