The Los Angeles Lakers begin their three-game road trip on Monday night against the Phoenix Suns. While Kobe Bryant will travel with the team for the road trip, he will probably not play in all three games and is currently listed as doubtful for tonight’s game.
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Before the Lakers take on the Suns, Goran Dragic will become an unrestricted free agent this upcoming summer and Los Angeles is expected to pursue him. Speaking with the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, Dragic is keeping his options open when asked if the Lakers were a possible destination via Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News:
“It’s not just L.A. I think it’s everybody,” Dragic said. “Back in Europe, there are bad teams financially and teams that aren’t organized. But every team in the NBA is a good organization.”
While Dragic is keeping his options open and focused on this season, he had high praise for Kobe Bryant and says he could learn a lot:
“Any player that is one of the best players in the league would be cool to play with. Kobe is a legend,” Dragic said “I know how awesome it is to be around those superstars. If you’re patient enough and you listen, you learn a lot.”
With the Lakers currently starting Ronnie Price, the team is in need of an upgrade at the point guard position this summer. Although there will be numerous point guards available including Rajon Rondo (unrestricted) and Reggie Jackson (restricted), Dragic has said in the past that he will have an ‘open’ free agency.
As the Lakers are headed to the lottery for the second consecutive season, the franchise will have approximately $30 million to pursue big-name free agents like Dragic. In addition to the cap space, the Lakers may potentially have a top-five pick in this year’s draft which will likely feature Jahlil Okafor from Duke University.
[divide]Lakers Kobe Bryant Discusses Future Possibility Of Being Shutdown