Getty DeMarcus Cousins
Following the news that Kawhi Leonard had decided to take his talents to the Lakers’ roommates at the Staples Center, the Lakers went on a huge spending spree – adding a total of seven players so far in free agency. Equipped with a max slot (roughly $32 million), the Lakers have addressed a number of roster needs and built out a fairly deep roster with a very competent second unit.
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Lakers Updated Salary Cap Space After DeMarcus Cousins Free Agency Signing
Update on LAL cap situation: The team still has the $4.8M room ML. Since the team did not exhaust all of their cap space yesterday ( $1.7M remaining), they can still sign Alex Caruso (had a $1.6M cap hold) using the using early bird provision and exceed the cap.
The Lakers immediately signed Leonard’s teammate, Danny Green, to a two year deal after Leonard’s decision and followed that up by bringing back JaVale McGee and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on the same night. Shortly after on the next morning, the Lakers would go on to add DeMarcus Cousins, Quinn Cook, Rajon Rondo, and Alex Caruso to help further bolster their backcourt while giving them a pair of intriguing big men.
For all the Lakers’ moves, they still have some flexibility left. Cap specialist Bobby Marks projects that the Lakers still have about $4.8 million in available exception money and could use that to go out and land themselves another impact player off the bench. With now 13 players on the roster (including two-way standout Zach Norvell Jr.) the Lakers still have a few available roster spots to fill out heading into the season.
Considering the Lakers had been planning to go after almost entirely veteran minimum players had they landed Kawhi, the roster depth is a serious upgrade over what the Lakers would have come into the season with otherwise.
Lakers Possible Remaining Free Agency Targets
While the Lakers are pretty solid at the forward positions, going after high-energy big man Kenneth Faried might be a worthwhile option. Faried showed that he still can rebound and defend at a high level for the Rockets last season and using him as a change of pace off the bench could be a huge boost for the second unit.
That said, the Lakers also might want to address a bit more help with shooting and defense on the wing. Danny Green and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope are a good start but the Lakers would be wise to try and add another defender, like potentially David Nwaba to the rotation. Nwaba first cracked into the league with the Lakers a few years back and despite his offensive inefficiencies, is one of the best wing defenders in the league.
If the Lakers decide they would prefer to have an older, steadying veteran presence, Vince Carter is still available as well. However, Carter has made it clear that he isn’t a ring chaser and wants to go somewhere that he can get some actual playing time. Unfortunately, it seems like it would be difficult for Carter to crack the Lakers’ rotation – though his reliable three-point shot would certainly come in handy off the bench.