1. Kevin Knox
This is not necessarily the Los Angeles Lakers’ fault and for all we know the team could have been in on Kevin Knox during free agency. Knox ended up signing a deal just above the league minimum as he signed a two-year, $6 million deal with the Detroit Pistons.
That is obviously more money than the Lakers could have offered and Los Angeles is right to not have given Knox the Taxpayer MLE. That being said, it might end up stinging in a few months knowing that the Lakers just needed that extra million dollars to get another young player on the roster.
That is just it: the age. The Lakers are trying to build a young core and in that young core could hopefully spawn some continuity when the team gets more financial flexibility next summer. Knox very well could have been part of that core as a recent lottery pick.
Sure, Knox has not panned out in the league thus far and the ship might have completely sailed on him being an all-star caliber player. However, he has not been in the best of situations and there is still something there to develop. There is pedigree and the Lakers have some of the best player development in the entire league.
Knox is still only going to be 23 years old next season and the Lakers could have done wonders if they got their hands on him for two seasons. Malik Monk was a fantastic recent lottery pick signing for LA last summer and Knox could be the one that got away this summer.