The Los Angeles Lakers will star hunt this summer, as they do most every offseason, but landing a couple of quality veteran contributors at value will also be a crucial priority.
Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report on Friday, May 31, suggested that point guard Kyle Lowry is among the players L.A. is likely to target.
“He’s probably better suited for a bench role, but Lowry is one of the great older veterans in the league. The Sixers may bring him back, either on a minimum contract or with part of their RMLE,” Pincus wrote. “While that seems like the most likely outcome, he’ll probably have minimum offers from the [Los Angeles] Clippers, Lakers and [Phoenix] Suns.”
Lakers Considered Trading With Raptors for Kyle Lowry in 2021
GettyKyle Lowry will be a free agent in the summer of 2024.
The Lakers’ interest in the 38-year-old point guard didn’t begin this summer, but instead is traceable back to the 2020-21 season.
Los Angeles was one of multiple suitors engaged in talks with the Toronto Raptors, then Lowry’s team, ahead of that year’s trade deadline. L.A. had the salaries to make the deal work, but ultimately chose not to sacrifice Talen Horton-Tucker as part of the return package, leading to a breakdown in discussions.
Jovan Buha and Bill Oram of The Athletic explained in detail why the deal didn’t work out in an article from March 2021.
Multiple sources told The Athletic that the Lakers and Raptors discussed a trade that would have sent both members of Los Angeles’ starting backcourt, Dennis Schröder and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and likely some draft compensation to Toronto for Lowry. Throughout Thursday morning, sources said, the sticking point was the inclusion of Talen Horton-Tucker.
The same sources said that Rob Pelinka, the Lakers’ vice president of basketball operations, insisted that price was too high for the 35-year-old Lowry, and that he was not willing to trade Horton-Tucker, the 20-year-old combo guard who has emerged as a valuable rotation player for the Lakers in his second season.
Lowry Can Offer Lakers More Value Now Than 3 Years Ago
GettyKyle Lowry, formerly of the Philadelphia 76ers.
As it turns out, the Lakers dodged a bullet by avoiding a trade for Lowry.
He ultimately ended up signing a three-year extension for $85 million in a sign-and-trade deal between the Raptors and Heat in August 2021. And while Lowry remained a serviceable pro and a regular starter in Miami, he ultimately proved a liability at that price.
The Heat eventually dealt Lowry to the Charlotte Hornets for Terry Rozier ahead of last season’s trade deadline. The Hornets released Lowry, after which the Philadelphia 76ers inked him to a $2.8 million deal to play out the year.
Lowry proved a quality addition to the Sixers’ roster, as he likely would next season to the Lakers’ roster if the team is able to secure him by way of a veteran minimum contract. Lowry averaged 8 points, 4.6 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 0.9 steals in 28.4 minutes for Philadelphia across 23 regular season appearances (20 starts), per Basketball Reference.
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Lakers Predicted to Offer Deal to 6-Time All-Star Point Guard