1. Tyreke Evans — G, New Orleans Pelicans
Ultimately, this feels like where this will be headed for the Lakers. Not only does Tyreke Evans making just north of $10 million for the 2016-17 season fit right into the salary parameters already set forth, but it’s also not much of a secret that the New Orleans Pelicans are in a position where they desperately need to re-work their roster to make them relevant in the Western Conference. After Eric Gordon’s departure in free agency, it would stand to reason that trading Evans could be next on the docket.
Obviously Evans would be a bit of a weird fit with the Lakers immediately as the backcourt for the Lakers is already a bit crowded. Moreover, he also doesn’t provide much of the veteran leadership that someone like even Deng or Mozgov could. However, he does help to make sure that the Lakers are secure in their salary cap figure for this season while having a plethora of room for next summer and also hopefully getting a deal that features future draft picks as well.
Next: Lakers Depth Chart for 2016-17: Late July Edition
For the Pelicans, they’re on the right track to doing what they need to do to start a proper rebuild (Solomon Hill signing not counted), but the next step would undoubtedly be clearing up space in their backcourt for players like Buddy Hield moving forward. Subsequently, moving on from Tyreke sooner rather than later might be just the way to do it and the Lakers are a team that could be more than willing to absorb that contract and get a little something for their trouble.