Should Carlos Boozer return as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers?

Carlos Boozer is ready to return as a Laker if the organization can field a team who can compete.

Carlos Boozer thinks that he might return as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers for next year. According to Mike Breshnahan on Twitter, Boozer says that if the Lakers can field a worthy team of his presence, that he will stay.

Carlos Boozer says he's interested in coming back to the Lakers "If we had a team that could compete."
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) April 16, 2015

The statements came after Boozer averaged just 11.8 points per game this season on a Lakers team that went just 21-61. But should the 33-year-old really spend any more time with the storied franchise than he has to? His contract expired at the end of the 2014-15 season. Weighing his options with another team might be in his best interests. However, apparently if the Lakers can compete, Boozer is sold and will stay.

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First of all, how will the Lakers even come close to fielding a team that can compete with the likes of some of the top teams in the West? The competitiveness the West will possess next near will only increase as Kevin Durant returns from injury and the rest of the teams will more or less stick together, if not improve. Even if Kobe Bryant returns to the Lakers, (and let’s entertain the idea that he will be healthy and able to produce like he has the past couple of years) the team still probably wouldn’t make the playoffs.

They would need a serious offseason signing to go with Kobe and Boozer if they plan on being competitive, the likes of which I don’t see happening. If I were any of the big-name free agents, the Lakers would be the last place I would go. Pairing up with an aging Kobe and a shooting guard who cares more about gimmicks off the court than getting wins (Nick Young) would be an awful idea.

So Boozer shouldn’t sign with the Lakers. What he should try to do is latch on to a team who is ready to win now. Even if that means he will have a diminished role or even come off the bench. At 33 years older, Boozer isn’t getting younger. He needs to sign with a team like the Houston Rockets or Cleveland Cavaliers if he plans on legitimately competing. Obviously, this will mean he takes a pay cut. But there are worse things. Like losing 61 games in a year.

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