Los Angeles Lakers: 3 point guards to target during the 2020 offseason
Goran Dragic
Having signed a 5-year/$85,002,250 deal all the way back during the 2015/16 season, it is fair to say that Goran Dragic has secured the bag.
With the deal coming to an end this Summer, it is also fair to say that the Miami Heat got the best years out of Dragic and that his best earning days in terms of getting significant money on the market might be over.
This has become even more evident by the Miami Heat moving Dragic to the bench over the course of the 2019-20 season.
At 33, turning 34 this summer, it might be the perfect time for Dragic to go ring chasing in L.A.
The term ring chaser has been seen as taboo over the years with players such as David West, Ray Allen and even superstar Kevin Durant going to super-teams in order to win a ring.
With super teams being the norm these days with Westbrook and Harden in Houston, Kawhi and Paul George with the Clippers, Durant, and Kyrie in Brooklyn and of course LeBron and AD with the Lakers, ring chasers are just part and parcel of what it takes to fill out championship rosters these days.
With LeBron James and Anthony Davis together on one team, you will always have a chance at winning a ring.
While Dragic has declined from his All-Star form from the last few years, there is still life in him yet.
Averaging 16.1PPG, 43.7 FG%, 37.7 3pt%, 3.1 RPG and 5.1APG, Dragic is still capable of coming in and producing at a high level.
The Lakers right now would kill for that production at point guard.
With Dragic added to the Lakers, there would be no worries when LeBron James comes off the floor as they would have Dragic on the floor capable of running the offense.
Contract wise the Lakers could potentially offer him the Full mid-level exception which is in or around the $9.76 million mark. It might not take the full amount of the full mid-level exception to land Dragic but the necessary money should be available to land Dragic if needed.
Adding Dragic to the squad would give the Los Angeles Lakers arguably the most well-rounded team in the NBA.
Darren Collison
A name that should be familiar to Lakers nation, Darren Collison was very nearly a Laker this season if reports are to be believed.
Having retired from the NBA the year previous in order to spend more time with his family and dedicate his life to his religion, Collison flirted with the idea of coming back to the NBA and was hotly chased by both LA teams.
It wasn’t hard to see why. Not often does a starting-caliber point guard become available in the middle of the season and it wouldn’t cost a team draft capital or an asset to land him.
In the end, both teams were unsuccessful in their pursuit of Collison as he chooses to stay retired for the remainder of the season at the very least.
It isn’t hard to see why Collison is waiting until the Summer in order to sign a deal.
If he signed mid-season, he would have had to settle for a fraction of what he could get this Summer as both teams wouldn’t have much to offer in way of salary. In waiting for the Summer, Collison is able to get more money, more years and will have more than two teams fighting for his signature.
Is Collison worth fighting for? When you are a team with limited cap space to add a starting-caliber point guard you badly need, then yeah he is worth fighting for.
For his play-making making ability alone, Collison would be worth pursuing, he would offer a solid pick and roll play-maker who is already familiar with Coach Frank Vogel’s system, he offers a scorching percentage from the 3-point line shooting 39.4% 3 from downtown as well as a fantastic 85.3% from the free-throw line.
He isn’t a liability on the defensive side of the ball and he is a veteran who won’t get flustered or nervous when the big games come.
If the Lakers have the opportunity to sign Darren Collison this off-season, they should grab him with both hands.