Lakers Free Agency: Front Office Strikes Out For the Third Straight Summer
If the first day of free agency is any indication of the things to come for the Lakers moving forward, fans are in for a world of disappointment
Lakers fans entered this free agency period with hope that this year would be different. That this would be the year that the Lakers front office finally showed that they were capable of effectively navigating the free agent landscape and, even if they missed out on stars, secure solid players with competitive contracts.
Those hopes were dashed less than two hours from the start of free agency when, in a comically short period of time, the Lakers made the baffling determined pursuit of one of the least coveted players on the free agent market, Timofey Mozgov.
In a turn of events which shocked Lakers fans and instilled glee in their haters, the franchise ultimately agreed to a 4-year, $64 million contract with the free agent center. One thing that must be mentioned is that Mozgov was ranked well below at least ten other centers on most free agent boards and landed at seventy-fifth overall on Bleacher Report’s free agent rankings.
It was assumed that the team would benefit from the time saved not getting meetings with Kevin Durant and Hassan Whiteside, but instead the Lakers were tripping over themselves to make a near-max offer to a player that was never on anybody’s radar.
While Mozgov as a top-priority player makes absolutely no sense, the money the Lakers chose to offer him is even more ridiculous. The contract averages out to $16 million per year, which many have claimed will seem reasonable compared to many of the contracts signed this year and next year. That argument took a hit however, when Al Jefferson agreed to a three year deal for only $10 million per season.
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While Jefferson is an even worse fit for this young Lakers team, he is undoubtedly a far better player than Mozgov. Considering a superior player agreed to a deal worth less than half of what the Lakers offered Mozgov, it’s safe to say that the deal will rank among the most dramatic overpays of even this inflated off-season.
Since agreeing to terms, the Lakers have been roundly mocked on the internet, by both professionals and fans alike. The move has been interpreted by many as the franchise simply giving up on impact free agents or even of being taken advantage of by a shrewd agent.
Perhaps the strangest aspect of the move is the incredible change of strategy which it represents. The Lakers have prioritized cap flexibility for years, even at the cost of players like Kent Bazemore, opting instead to sign players to short term contracts or let them go altogether.
While this was a poor strategy to begin with, the fact that Mozgov was the player for whom the Lakers abandoned that strategy for is frustrating to say the least. Having prioritized the strategy over far superior players in the past, and with far more attractive options still available on the open market, the fact that the Lakers locked themselves into multiple years of Mozgov demonstrates a deeply disturbing level of incompetence.
Further, signing him to such an outrageous contract will have repercussions on the franchise for years to come. Teams with so much cap space tied up in albatross contracts typically struggle to upgrade their roster and often are forced to sacrifice assets to simply to free themselves from the financial burden.
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There was absolutely no reason for the Lakers to put themselves in this situation this season, and particularly not so early in free agency. The fact that the front office rushed towards this deal at full speed should raise serious questions about the ability and vision of those at the helm and about the direction of the franchise as a whole.