UPDATE (June 3, 2015 at 7:38 PM PST): According to Shams Charania of RealGM, Tobias Harris has re-signed with the Orlando Magic:
[divide]Orlando restricted free agent Tobias Harris has reached agreement on a deal to re-sign with the Magic, league sources tell RealGM.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 4, 2015
Heading into free agency, the Los Angeles Lakers were optimistic of landing a frontcourt player after selecting D’Angelo Russell at the 2015 NBA Draft. Unfortunately for the franchise, these players have either remained with their teams or signed elsewhere.
— Have you seen the ‘Bleed Purple and Gold’ phone case? —
With the Lakers unable to sign any players three days into free agency, Tobias Harris of the Orlando Magic was considered an option. Although the forward is restricted, there have been reports of the Magic not matching any max contract offers. However, according to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, Orlando fully intends to match any offer sheets:
League sources say #Magic fully intend to match any offer sheet for Tobias Harris, meaning interested teams such as #celtics unlikely to bid
— gary washburn (@GwashburnGlobe) July 3, 2015
With the free agency market quickly drying up, the Lakers may have to entertain trade options for expiring contracts to preserve their cap space in 2016. While the Lakers had high hopes of landing an All-Star caliber player to speed up the rebuilding process, David Lee, Roy Hibbert and Nenê are reportedly on the trading block.
After Carmelo Anthony re-signed with the New York Knicks last summer, the Lakers moved on to Plan B and acquired Jeremy Lin and a first round draft pick from the Houston Rockets. Although the first round pick was expected to be in the early 20’s, the Lakers ended up selecting Larry Nance Jr. with the 27th pick.
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