Spurs open door for Lakers to bring back player who should’ve never left

The Los Angeles Lakers are looking to improve the rotation this season as the roster has shown glimmers of hope. The most talked-about path to improve the roster is via trade, even though a Russell Westbrook trade seems like it will never happen.

Lakers fans should not overlook the free-agent market, though. Later in the season, there are going to be some potential additions to the rotation that either get waived or bought out by their respective teams. These players are not the best possible option but they can provide a spark.

Rob Pelinka has proven in the past that he will not hesitate to bring back a former Laker and thanks to the San Antonio Spurs, there is a chance that the team can bring back a valuable wing player that should have never left the Lakers in the first place.

Thanks to the Spurs, the Lakers might be able to reunite with Stanley Johnson.

Less than a week after signing with the Miami Heat’s G League affiliate, Stanley Johnson has signed a standard NBA contract with the San Antonio Spurs. Johnson was under contract with the Lakers at the start of the league year but was included in the Patrick Beverley trade that most fans regret.

Seeing Johnson sign with one of the team’s biggest rivals might not be good news to LA fans. However, this opens the door for Johnson to return to Los Angeles as it was not physically possible before this happened.

Since Johnson was on the roster at the start of the league year, the Lakers were unable to reacquire him after the trade. The only way they could reacquire Johnson is if there was another team in-between. The Lakers needed Johnson to sign with an NBA team after being waived by the Utah Jazz to clear the reacquire rule.

Now, the Lakers would have the power to re-sign Johnson if the Spurs were to waive him, which is not out of the picture. It is not a guarantee that San Antonio parts ways with Johnson before the year is up but it would not be the most shocking thing considering he is a December signing on a bad team.

Or, if the Lakers make any kind of trade with San Antonio for a shooter they could attach Johnson in the deal as well. Regardless, there is at least now a path for Los Angeles to bring back a fan-favorite role player that most fans did not want to see leave in the first place.

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Los Angeles needs wing depth and Johnson would have provided exactly that. It did not make a lot of sense when it happened and it still doesn’t make much sense now. Hopefully in the future, Rob Pelinka gets a chance to right his wrong.