DeMar DeRozan discusses how legitimate Lakers chances were of signing him

The Los Angeles Lakers will be linked to DeMar DeRozan until the day that he retires. In addition to being one of the most productive scorers in NBA history, DeRozan is a Compton native who has never hidden his Lakers fandom.

The summer of 2024 was the latest development on that front, as the 35-year-old DeRozan entered unrestricted free agency for the first time since 2021.

DeRozan was inevitably mentioned as an option for the Lakers, which had limited cap space but grand ambitions. The preferred outcome among those who favored Los Angeles signing DeRozan was for him to join forces with Anthony Davis and LeBron James, thus creating a Big Three.

In a recent appearance on Podcast P with Paul George, DeRozan clarified that the Lakers were one of the teams he was considering signing with this summer.

"I was thinking about Philly. Philly definitely was an option. Lakers was an option, always. Clippers was an option. And the Heat was an option. I'd say those teams for sure was a real, personal legitimate option for me that I was considering."

DeRozan, a known Lakers fan who idolized Kobe Bryant, tacked on the, "Always," in a way that further establishes how strong of a fit there could've been.

DeMar DeRozan seriously considered signing with the Lakers

DeRozan will enter the 2024-25 season as a three-time All-NBA honoree and six-time All-Star. He ranks No. 31 in NBA history in scoring with 23,582 points. and has averaged at least 20.1 points per game in each of the past 11 seasons.

That includes 2023-24, when the 35-year-old defied Father Time to average 24.0 points, 5.3 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.1 steals per game on 48.0 percent shooting from the field.

Ranked among the greatest midrange shooters of all time, DeRozan has been walking proof that players don't need to conform to modern standards to be successful. He continues to prioritize shots from within the three-point line while more scarcely shooting the three-ball.

DeRozan has increased his output in recent seasons, averaging 0.9 three-point field goals made per game on 33.6 percent shooting, but his bread and butter remains the same.

Throw in a career mark of 84.1 percent at the free throw line and 63 games of postseason experience, and it's easy to see why he's been linked to the Lakers. At his best, DeRozan is one of the consistent isolation scorers in the NBA, with the skill to offset any fear of an athletic decline.

Unfortunately, the stars failed to align once again with the Lakers, as DeRozan instead signed a three-year, $73.89 million contract with the Sacramento Kings.

As such, DeRozan will not be eligible for free agency until 2027, when he'll be turning 38 years of age. That would imply that the odds of him ever donning the purple and gold are slim, save for the event that the unlikeliest of developments happens late in his career.

Regardless of what transpires in the future, what's clear is that DeRozan was seriously considering the Lakers as his free-agency destination in 2024. Perhaps that bodes well for future free agency opportunities in Los Angeles.