Conclusion
The Lakers say that only James is guaranteed to be a starter this coming season. Second-year man Josh Hart, who is playing well, will compete with KCP during training camp this fall.
Still, expect that KCP will return to his starting 2-guard position when the season opens with Hart being a valuable reserve coming off the bench.
The team may have slightly overpaid KCP (one-year for $12 million) but they had room under the cap to afford that while still maintaining salary flexibility for next year.
The front office knew exactly what they’d be getting- a tough defender, a good 3-point shooter, a good scorer in other ways, and a good presence who fits in well on the team.
Overall, re-signing KCP was an excellent move.
Next: Grading The Lakers Free Agency Thus Far and Potential Moves
All statistics courtesy of www.basketball-reference.com