As the season nears, the Los Angeles Lakers roster has mostly taken shape. Once the DeAndre Jordan signing becomes official, the team should have one more spot available. They could fill up that spot now or wait until the season starts to keep some flexibility.
It could be tempting to fill that last roster spot right now if an intriguing player becomes available. Darren Collison has been a player that’s been linked to the team for well over a year now. The Los Angeles native is technically retired, but at only 34-years-old could feasibly still play a couple of more years.
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported last month that Collison had a workout with the Lakers. The team didn’t sign him after that but it appears that he’s staying close to the team. A video started circulating online of a Lakers scrimmage and the #Lakers Podcast is reporting that Collison is among the players playing.
6 second clip of a scrimmage that happened at Lakers facility Tues that included among others: THT, Monk, Nunn, Chaundee Brown, McClung, Reaves, and… yes, we confirmed that Darren Collison was there (hard to identify him but he’s in this clip) 👀🔥
Now, this doesn’t mean that Collison to the Lakers is a done deal. He lives in Los Angeles and has popped up at games before. He could just be looking to get a workout in with some professional players. That said, it is interesting considering there’s been talk of him returning to the NBA.
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Collison Recently Worked out for Warriors
While Collison could be on the Lakers’ radar, there are other teams that could target the veteran guard. According to Haynes, Collison has worked out for the Golden State Warriors recently.
Free agent guard Darren Collison will work out for the Golden State Warriors this week, league sources tell @YahooSports.
The Warriors play in San Francisco, which isn’t exactly down the street from Los Angeles. However, it’s a lot closer to Collison’s hometown than most other teams can offer him. It appears that the guard is feeling things out right now and testing if he truly wants to return to basketball. He’s been wishy-washy on the subject before and it doesn’t look like anything has changed.
Collison Played at UCLA With Russell Westbrook
If Collison does end up returning to the NBA, one of the Los Angeles teams makes the most sense. A big reason why the Lakers could be the team he ends up on is due to Russell Westbrook. Collison and the former MVP played at UCLA together from 2006 to 2008. The two were able to make it to the Final Four together but haven’t had a chance to play in the NBA on the same team.
Collison and Westbrook have remained close over the years. The idea of the two Los Angeles boys who played at UCLA growing up and winning a title with the Lakers has to be appealing to Collison. With the recent signing of Rajon Rondo, it’s not a sure thing that the Lakers would even want to sign Collison now. His minutes would be very limited to a third or fourth strong point guard. However, that could be the kind of situation he’s looking for if he came out of retirement.
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Former Russell Westbrook Teammate Seen Scrimmaging With Lakers Players