There was a time not long ago when Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort was viewed by the Los Angeles Lakers as a top free-agent target. Dort has an $18.2 million club option with the Thunder this summer. When Dort decided to switch agencies this year and sign with Klutch Sports Group (run by LeBron James' good friend, Rich Paul), the Lakers-Dort connection looked even stronger.
But it's amazing how impactful a downturn in production can have on a player's reputation, and that's kind of what's happened with Dort recently. Dort wasn't good this postseason (due to horrid shooting, among other things), and he even lost the trust of Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault by the end of the Western Conference Finals. This may have turned off the Lakers entirely to the idea of pursuing Dort (rather than retaining Marcus Smart), and it may also have diminished the chances that OKC will want Dort back.
Lu Dort signing with Klutch Sports (and not playing well) may have scared off Thunder, Lakers
Beyond Dort's diminished basketball performance of late, his decision to sign with Klutch signaled that he's looking to make big money on his next contract. This can't be attractive to a team like OKC that is already dealing with five other team options this offseason and is expected to prioritize that of Isaiah Hartenstein over Dort's.
If circumstances were different, Dort's return to the Thunder might be more feasible. Imagine, for example, that he'd never signed with Klutch and that he was outspokenly willing to sign a two-year, lower AAV deal with the Thunder this offseason (with a player option for next offseason) to help with their cap space, setting himself up to rehabilitate his value and potentially get his "big deal" in a year. There's no evidence that those conversations aren't happening, but from the outside looking in, Dort's partnership with Klutch points to a different strategy entirely.
Not dissimilar from the Thunder, the Lakers have a crowded cap situation if and when they sign Austin Reaves to a new deal and bring back LeBron James. Why would they be interested in Dort, especially if he's looking for someone to overpay him?
This isn't to say that nearly every athlete is looking to maximize their value on the market and/or have someone pay them more than they're worth. Dort isn't being greedy or anything like that; he's just operating as expected. But that doesn't mean that teams like the Thunder and Lakers -- teams with their stars in place and looking for role players on value contracts -- should be interested in giving Dort what he's looking for.
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