One of the players that the Los Angeles Lakers were interested in this offseason was Dwyane Wade. According to Caron Butler, that feeling was mutual.
Despite not being interested in giving multi-year deals this offseason, the Los Angeles Lakers were actively involved in trying to sign a few free agents.
One of the players that the Lakers were interested in was Dwyane Wade. Even though Wade is not the All-Star player that he once was, he still would have been a welcomed addition to the Lakers.
While the Lakers are certainly getting better, it was surprising to see that Wade was interested in coming to Los Angeles. As a veteran and a winner, it made sense that Wade ended up joining forces with LeBron James in Cleveland.
Recently, former Laker Caron Butler talked about why Wade was considering coming to the Lakers. Here’s what Butler said to TMZ via Trevor Lane of LakersNation.com.
"“With the Lakers, it made sense because of life after basketball and all the things his lovely wife, Gabrielle Union, and himself is involved with.”"
Seeing Wade being interested in the Lakers is certainly encouraging for next offseason. The allure of Los Angeles certainly appears to be factoring in players’ minds again, and the Lakers should be an improved team if they continue to develop their young talent.
Since the Lakers are certainly going to be interested in some of the premier free agents, having meetings go well this offseason is a good sign for the future. In addition to the city and the young talent on the team being alluring, also having great leadership with Magic Johnson is a major positive.
Players in the NBA certainly respect and admire Johnson for not only what he accomplished on the court, but how successful he has been since then. With many players looking for success similar to Johnson, joining him in Los Angeles is certainly a good selling point.
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It certainly made a lot of sense to see Wade to join LeBron and the Cavaliers since they have a chance to compete for an NBA Title. However, if the Lakers are able to put a title contending roster together next offseason, it will be interesting to see if they can lure players like Wade to join.