The Los Angeles Lakers were the first team to strike in free agency but how much cap space does the team have left heading into training camp?
Uncharacteristic of the team in comparison to years past, the Los Angeles Lakers decided to forgo chasing after the bigger names and instead sign more realistic options who could fit with their young core and help catalyze their development going forward.
Of course, it must be mentioned that this was largely in part because the main free agents crossed the Lakers off their lists relatively quickly. Either way, it was a curious step in a different direction than the franchise has been going down for quite some time, and it may just be the change the organization needs to return to prominence.
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While the lengths of the contracts they gave out are still puzzling to some, including myself — especially when it was reported that the signings of both Luol Deng and Timofey Mozgov didn’t include team options — the Lakers still have a small chunk of cap space to sign one (or two) more players.
Having yet to officially sign rookie Brandon Ingram and with rumors floating around that the team is still contemplating undisclosed trades most likely involving Nick Young, LA’s salary cap situation is currently tricky to pin point.
That said, Basketball Insiders currently projects that the Lakers are on the books for $86.1 million. However, by stretching Young’s remaining two years, Los Angeles’ remaining cap space could go up to $13.6 million. Subtracting Brandon Ingram’s $4.4 million cap hold, that would leave the Lakers with about $8-9 million left of wiggle room.
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Seeing how the Portland Trailblazers were able to steal Festus Ezeli for just about $7 million a season, the Lakers could possibly add one more role player to the fold going forward.