Lakers Rumors: Darren Collison considers a return to Lakers or Clippers
By Ronald Agers
Darren Collison is considering a return to the NBA after surprising many with his retirement announcement last year. Lakers rumors link him to the roster. Lake Show Life breaks down the situation and what has to happen to get him in a uniform.
Los Angeles Lakers rumors have begun picking up with the trade deadline quickly approaching. As a result, many things have begun popping up.
January 1, 2020, brought three interesting events that will have the Los Angeles Lakers fans buzzing the next few days. The first event was the nuclear explosion the Lakers put on the Phoenix Suns in the first half of their matchup on Wednesday night.
The second event was the nuclear meltdown in the second half of the Phoenix matchup. The near-collapse of the game showed two things the Lakers need to address if they have a chance to going to the NBA Finals.
- An upgrade to the bench with a player that can knock down shots with any regularity.
- A playmaker that holds down the fort when LeBron James is sitting on the bench.
There was no reason to justify why LeBron James and Anthony Davis having to even touch the hardwood in the second half. History teaches us that the game should have been over and the Suns had no chance.
The Lakers lead the Suns by 33 at halftime, 74-41. It's the Lakers' largest halftime lead since Feb. 19, 2008 (led Hawks by 36).
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 2, 2020
In the shot clock era (since 1954-55), teams are 101-1 (.990) when leading by 33+ points at halftime. pic.twitter.com/cRrVNIAztQ
This game was a perfect “Load Management” game for the Lakers. Take care of business and allow the bench to do their job and finish off the game. Instead of doing their job, the bench put in one of their worst performances of the season.
When the rest of the starters returned to the game, the Suns had all of the momentum and the Lakers blew a game-high 36 point lead all the way down to seven points in the last quarter. If not for LeBron James closing out the game, this would have been easily one of the biggest collapses in NBA history. Best believe that it was close.
The Lakers led by as many as 36 points tonight and only won by 10.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 2, 2020
They're the 653th team over the last 20 seasons to lead a game by at least 36 points; their 10-point margin of victory is the smallest of any of them. The average margin of victory of those teams is 33.0 points.
This possible fiasco leads up to the third event. With the weaknesses being exposed for all of the other NBA contenders to see, it brought a former point guard to the world of Lakers rumors.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Darren Collison is considering a comeback with his sights on the L.A teams. As if the rivalry on the floor wasn’t enough, now the Lakers and Clippers are chasing two players, Andre Iguodala and Collison.
Believe it or not, it was rumored that Collison was a potential option if the Lakers didn’t land the third All-Star player they wanted (Okay Kawhi Leonard!) and use some of the cap space created to sign him last offseason. But, he shocked the NBA world by retiring for religious reasons.
Before retiring, Collison averaged 11.2 points and 6.0 assists in Indiana. The one thing that will have the Lakers salivating is his shooting. He shot 46.7% from the field and 40.7% from the 3-point line.
But before discussing what Darren Collison brings to the Lakers in February possibly, the Lakers have to do without him for the next month. Let’s look at it.