The Los Angeles Lakers and president of basketball operations Magic Johnson have had a solid offseason, as they added four players to the organization through the draft in Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart and Thomas Bryant.
They also added former All-Star Brook Lopez to the organization through a trade, and most recently they signed shooting guard Kentavius Caldwell-Pope to a one-year contract, adding some defensive toughness to a young backcourt.
While the bulk of the Lakers front office’s work this offseason is done, there are a couple roster spots still available, and Johnson has said that he would like to bring in a veteran point guard to help mentor Ball.
According to Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet, on Tuesday at Caldwell-Pope’s introductory press conference, Johnson said he plans to address that need in the next week-and-a-half:
Lakers hope to fill the position of backup PG in the next week-and-a-half or so, Magic said.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) July 18, 2017
Among the free agent points guards that are still on the market are Isaiah Canaan, Ian Clark, Leandro Barbosa, Trey Burke, Tyler Ennis, Randy Foye, Brandon Jennings, Ty Lawson, Deron Williams. Ennis, Clark, and Canaan have all been mentioned as possibilities for the Lakers as has veteran Rodney Stuckey.
Ennis played well in his short stint with the Lakers last season, and they have expressed interest in bringing him back, but Johnson has emphasized that it’s a veteran that he is looking for, so that may not bode well for the younger free agents like Ennis and Clark.
The Lakers also signed Summer League sensation Alex Caruso to a two-way deal, meaning he can go back and forth between the team and their G-League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers. He does not provide the veteran leadership that Johnson is looking for though, which is why he is looking to the free agent market.
