NBA Free Agency 2017: 5 offseason needs for the Los Angeles Lakers
By Connor Learn
It is a new era of Lakers basketball. New faces with new visions will be rebuilding in Los Angeles, and it begins with the summer of 2017.
Controlling owner Jeanie Buss has established a new direction for the Lakers franchise. Her brother Jim is gone as President of Basketball Operations, as is longtime General Manager Mitch Kupchak. In are a couple of familiar faces. Magic Johnson was brought in as the new President of Basketball Ops and Kobe Bryant’s agent Rob Pelinka was hired as GM in February. The new Lakers brain trust will approach their first offseason with decisions to make.
The Lakers have begun the post Kobe Bryant era with a rebuilding process. They finished the 2016-17 season with the third-worst record in the league and their future is currently focused on a number of young players. D’Angelo Russell has shown clear scoring potential, Jordan Clarkson has too, to a lesser degree. Julius Randle got more consistent this season and showed solid point forward potential. Rookie forward Brandon Ingram progressed as the season went along as well. Forward Larry Nance Jr. and center Ivica Zubac surprised many with their play this season and should be considered keepers moving forward.
The new Lakers management will have to figure out the best ways to build around their young core this summer. Here are five needs for Los Angeles this summer:
5. Ping-pong balls need to bounce the Lakers way
When the Lakers were still in contention, they traded away a future first round pick to acquire Steve Nash from the Suns. The pick was later moved to Philadelphia in the Brandon Knight/Michael Carter-Williams trade, and it could be a setback in Los Angeles’ rebuilding process. It was top-three protected last year and is again this year. If the Lakers don’t have to give up the pick this summer, then it is completely unprotected next season.
Los Angeles has the third best lottery odds headed into the May 16 event. It is imperative to the future of the franchise that they stay within the top-three picks. It is an important enough event that Magic Johnson will now represent the franchise at the lottery. The Lakers will have to give up a pick regardless of the outcome, but adding a player at the top of a really solid draft likely beats next year’s outcome.
If LaVar Ball is to be believed, there is one long-rumored potential Laker that would be a target if they land in the top three of the lottery. Lonzo Ball would indeed compliment D’Angelo Russell’s talents well and could be the pick. Depending on where they land in the top three, Markelle Fultz or Josh Jackson would be prizes as well. But at this point, this is all a hypothetical: Magic Johnson needs to win on lottery night.