Los Angeles Lakers should only focus on free agents this summer

As the offseason approaches for the Los Angeles Lakers, they would be wise to only pursue free agents this summer and not attempt to trade for a star.

Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant went on the record a few weeks ago, basically saying if you can get Anthony Davis in a trade, you do it. However, earlier this season, he talked about the importance of building a team “organically” that can be sustainable in the long-term.

He was right the first time.

The Golden State Warriors got to where they are today by drafting and developing their players, allowing them to build chemistry and an environment attractive to free agents. The Lakers currently have a group of young talented players that they drafted themselves and have been developing. They need to keep the young core in order to setup the team for long-term success.

When I think of building a team “organically”, as Kobe put it, I think the Lakers have already messed up a bit, but can still salvage that kind of culture. Look at the players they drafted and developed, only to let them move onto other teams.

D’Angelo Russell, he was too immature and trading him away ended up getting them Kyle Kuzma, but he was an All-Star this season.

Julius Randle, after having a fantastic season, was a restricted free-agent. He easily could’ve been brought back. Now he’s balling out in New Orleans.

Thomas Bryant, another guy the Lakers drafted, but then let him go. He’s had much success since with the Washington Wizards.

And Ivica Zubac… nobody understands why they traded the very promising young center.

This leaves the Lakers with the young core of Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, and Josh Hart. These guys have spent a lot of time playing together and building chemistry. They are all capable of being high-quality NBA players.

Brandon Ingram was having the best stretch of games in his career before his season-ending blood clot problem. Lonzo Ball appeared to have finally found his confidence in the last few games he played before his ankle injury. Lonzo already was crucial to the team, but when he found that confidence, we saw potential for something really special.

Kuzma and Hart are both great young players, and Kuzma is a natural born scorer. Oh, and special mention for Alex Caruso, who has been playing phenomenal basketball for the franchise in Lonzo’s absence. If they keep this core, this could be the next big dynasty in the NBA.

This leads me to the point of all this. Do not trade the young core. Stop the revolving door of players and commit to some. If LeBron, Ingram, Ball, and Kuzma had been healthy all season, they were on pace to win over 50 games. That quartet only got to play about a quarter of the season together.

Enter free agency. The Lakers front office has been preserving this precious cap space for a while now, in order to land a big name in free agency this summer. There’s lots of possibilities, and it’s likely they will be able to acquire one of the many stars they’re going to try to sign.

Kawhi Leonard is possible, but he is rumored to be more interested in the Clippers.

Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson probably aren’t coming, and that’s okay. There’s still two or three big fish, and they could reel one in.

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Kyrie Irving would be amazing. For one, he obviously already knows how to play with LeBron very well. He’s also close with Kobe Bryant. He could look at the Lakers and think maybe he can win now with LeBron, then become the new leader of the team over time, kind of like Kobe did with Shaq.

Jimmy Butler is another great option. An All-Star caliber player who can score with the best of them. They don’t call him Jimmy Buckets for nothing.

There’s also Kemba Walker, or DeMarcus Cousins, both phenomenal players. If they can add just one of these guys into the fold, and keep the young core, they could be a powerhouse for years to come.

The Lakers were in 4th place in the West at the end of 2018. That’s pretty good considering a whole bunch of new veterans and the biggest star in basketball were just starting to learn to play together with the young guys. Injuries are what ruined this season, not the lack of Anthony Davis.

Davis will probably sign with the Lakers when he hits free agency in the summer of 2020 anyways. Why trade all these extremely promising young players for him now? Especially when they can simply add another star into the mix via free-agency.

Ideal scenario this offseason? Sign Kyrie Irving. Re-sign players who played well for the team, like they should have done with Brook Lopez and Randle last year. Javale McGee should be brought back in my opinion, as he exceeded expectations and played very well for much of the season. Rajon Rondo should also be re-signed. He just had the most assists in a game by a Laker since Nick Van Exel. And we didn’t even get to see “playoff Rondo” yet.

Yes, I see this would leave them with quite a few point guards, but Kyrie could play at the shooting guard position, or they could use lineups with multiple point guards.

If not Kyrie, then Jimmy Butler or DeMarcus Cousins would be awesome additions. This team is going to be just fine, they just had a lot of bad luck this season. The important thing is to keep the continuity going, commit to players, and keep the young core intact. Heck, Brandon Ingram could turn into an All-Star next season.