There’s been a lot of speculation swirling around the Los Angeles Lakers in terms of the team’s plan heading into the NBA off-season. Many believe the team will attempt to make a major splash in NBA free agency with a few big-name players set to become available on the open market.
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Among the players expected to become free agents this summer, Rajon Rondo may be the most likely to sign with the Lakers. Although Rondo may be the most likely to head to Los Angeles, Goran Dragic has also been a point guard the team is expected to target.
According to Sean Deveney of Sporting News, the Lakers could put Rondo ahead of Dragic at the top of the list of free agents they want to land:
The Lakers are not in the market for a guy who can make the team better; they need a bona fide star, the kind of player they thought they were getting when they traded for Dwight Howard in 2012. The Howard deal flopped, though, and the Lakers have been rudderless since. It could be Bryant’s final season, and the franchise does not want to send him off with yet another rebuilding year, though that might be in the best long-term interest of the team. Assuming the Lakers stay in win-soon mode, it is a safe bet that they will go hard after the two top point guards on the market, with Bryant’s pal Rajon Rondo at the head of the list and Goran Dragic behind him.
At this point in time, the team is high on rookie point guard Jordan Clarkson. The Missouri product has proven to be much better than expected and will likely be in the team’s long-term plans moving forward.
Despite Clarkson’s development, it appears the team is still ready to target a point guard in free agency. The real question heading into free agency is whether Los Angeles will offer Rondo a max contract or try to make the deal flexible enough for the team to pursue another free agent this summer.
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