Los Angeles Lakers: Why we won’t see any big offseason signings

1. The Los Angeles Lakers don’t have a plethora of cap space

You need money to spend money and the Los Angeles Lakers are not going to have much room to spend next offseason. Unlike this past offseason, when the team had the funds to add around LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers are not going to have the cap space to add several difference-makers.

There are ways around this, however, which the Lakers have utilized in the past. The veteran minimum has been used by the team several times and is a good way to fill out depth on the roster while the mid-level exception could also be used to add quality depth.

Depending on how much the Lakers spend on re-signing players such as DeMarcus Cousins and Dwight Howard, they might be able to qualify for the nontaxpayer mid-level exception. This would be better for the team, as it would allow them to sign a contract up to four years, starting at a $9.72 million salary in 2020-2021.

However, based on the fact that Davis is going to get a higher salary and the team might want to retain the familiar faces to keep the same dynamic, they are likely going to spend the $20 million it would take to go over the luxury tax apron.

Then, the Lakers would only be able to utilize the taxpayer mid-level exception, allowing them to sign up to a three-year deal worth $6 million in the 2020-2021 season.

That is going to make them much less intriguing to possible suitors and is going to significantly hurt their chances.