Not surprisingly the Lakers were able to lure in the top talent in the league through either trade or free agency. Stars like Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabaar, Shaquille O'Neal, Pau Gasol, Steve Nash, Dwight Howard, and Kobe Bryant were brought in to continue to grow the Laker legend. Meanwhile the draft had been kind as well, allowing the team to land all-time greats like Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, and Andrew Bynum (just kidding).
Today things look considerably different for the Lakers, with an aging and injured Kobe Bryant as the team's only star player (Nick Young would disagree, but he'd be the only one). They are doing what they can to improve the roster, and are rumored to have attempted to land Rajon Rondo, Brook Lopez, and Greg Monroe via trade. While all of these players are talented they don't represent the typical superstars that the Lakers chase after, which is indicative of a serious problem.
The NBA changed the rules on the purple and gold, with small markets ganging up on the profitable behemoth during the last Collective Bargaining Agreement. In spite of all the money teams make off the Lakers in the form of profit sharing they were determined to pull a Treaty of Versailles on the Buss family's franchise, because that totally worked out well for the world.
Small-market owners not only wanted more parity in the league but they also wanted to see the Lakers nerfed for as long as possible. One of the ways that they went about doing that was by making it incredibly difficult for young players to break away from the teams that drafted them, limiting the Lakers ability to add talent. Today, due to restricted free agency most players don't truly have the opportunity to leave for greener pastures until they have been in the league for as long as 8-9 years.
The only way for players to avoid this and get out before then is to play for the qualifying offer presented to them in their 5th season, which is a one-year deal and typically pays well below the going rate. The drawbacks of a move like this are enormous, as a star player would likely be turning down a max deal in order to accept a qualifying offer. A max contract is not only worth more than double the qualifying offer in a players 5th year but it also lasts for 4-5 years at the highest pay rate possible, which means that even if a star player despised the team that drafted them they would have to be willing to risk tens of millions of dollars in order to leave.
In other words, Anthony Davis will be staying with the Pelicans for a long, long time.
So what does all of this mean for the Lakers? They have hoarded cap space in order to chase superstar free agents but, for this summer at least, there really aren't any available. Instead of poaching guys like Shaq in free agency or Pau Gasol via trade the team now has to choose from the likes of Rondo, Monroe, LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Goran Dragic, Jeff Green, Luol Deng, and DeAndre Jordan...all quality players to be sure, but franchise-saving superstars? Not quite.
And yet each of the players on that list will command a max or near-max contract. That's what happens when the supply of free agent talent is low and many teams have cap space to burn.
Most of these teams also have rosters that are closer to winning than the Lakers 2015 lineup, which currently features only Young, Tarik Black, Ryan Kelly, Julius Randle, and farewell-tour Kobe on guaranteed deals (Ed Davis has a player option he is going to opt out of, while Jordan Clarkson, Tarik Black, Robert Sacre, and Jordan Hill all have team options). Suffice to say that the Lakers are currently not set up to win in 2015. Free agent magnets they are not.
To make matters worse, except for Jordan and Monroe, every player on that list is in their late 20's already, which means that by the time the contract is over they will be well into their 30's. They may be solid players, but given their ages they may not be willing to wait for a season or two while the Lakers rebuild.
The free agent list looks a little better for a team needing young talent when restricted free agents like Kawhi Leonard, Tobias Harris, Draymond Green, Jimmy Butler, and Brandon Knight are added to it but their incumbent teams are likely to match any offer. Even if the Lakers somehow get one of these guys to put pen to paper and sign with them they will never actually make it onto the Lakers roster.
To make matters worse, except for Jordan and Monroe, every player on that list is in their late 20's already, which means that by the time the contract is over they will be well into their 30's. They may be solid players, but given their ages they may not be willing to wait for a season or two while the Lakers rebuild.
The free agent list looks a little better for a team needing young talent when restricted free agents like Kawhi Leonard, Tobias Harris, Draymond Green, Jimmy Butler, and Brandon Knight are added to it but their incumbent teams are likely to match any offer. Even if the Lakers somehow get one of these guys to put pen to paper and sign with them they will never actually make it onto the Lakers roster.
Similarly there will be a number of big-name (and big money) stars of yesterday available at the trade deadline, but players such as Deron Williams would be more of a hindrance than a help to the rebuilding Lakers.
The bottom line is that it's unlikely that the Lakers will be able to find significant help in free agency this summer or the trade deadline in February, and that spells trouble for a team that will undoubtedly be feeling the pressure to improve. The fan base is getting restless, Kobe is on his last legs, and let's not forget that Jim Buss promised to resign if the Lakers aren't contending again in three years. It's under conditions like these that teams make bad decisions, and the Lakers are no different.
However, the nightmare scenario for Lakers fans isn't one where they don't land any help, it's making a panic move to attempt to win now. This would come at the cost of their few remaining assets or precious cap space and would likely return a player that might get a few headlines but wouldn't make much of a difference in the win column. The margin of error is so small that a mistake like that could be absolutely devastating to a franchise that has had nothing but bad luck for years now. They simply aren't ready for win-now moves, and the consequences of jumping the gun too quickly are steep (just ask the Nets).
It's not fun, but the Lakers will have to be incredibly shrewd with their assets this year. They need to continue to search for under-appreciated young talent while doing what they can to add draft picks. Maybe they will be able to find a diamond in the rough. Meanwhile, they can rent out cap space if need be the way they did in the Jeremy Lin trade in exchange for more picks to add to their nearly-empty war chest.
Above all else, they must resist the temptation to sign a Luol Deng or Rajon Rondo-type player or trade for big money, low production "stars". Those are band-aid moves. The equivalent of filling an empty stomach with McDonald's instead of waiting a little longer to get to what you are really craving. Sure, it would be satisfying in the short term, but soon you would be wishing that you had waited just a bit longer to find what you truly wanted.
Never settle. Good Lord he's frightening.
If they play their cards right the Lakers could head into the 2015/2016 season with 2 early 1st round picks added to their roster (Julius Randle and whoever they draft with a top 5 pick this year), young role players like Sacre, Black, Clarkson, and Kelly, plus plenty of cap space to facilitate moves that bring in talent or more picks. Build around youth and make the franchise into the fun, exciting brand that it used to be. Wins will follow eventually as the team is built from the ground up, and when the time is right the opportunity to add championship pieces will present itself.
All it takes is a little patience from the fans, a lot of luck, and a front office with self-control and will power. Let's hope that all involved in Laker land are up to the challenge.
Follow me on twitter @16ringsNBA for all things Lakers!
The bottom line is that it's unlikely that the Lakers will be able to find significant help in free agency this summer or the trade deadline in February, and that spells trouble for a team that will undoubtedly be feeling the pressure to improve. The fan base is getting restless, Kobe is on his last legs, and let's not forget that Jim Buss promised to resign if the Lakers aren't contending again in three years. It's under conditions like these that teams make bad decisions, and the Lakers are no different.
However, the nightmare scenario for Lakers fans isn't one where they don't land any help, it's making a panic move to attempt to win now. This would come at the cost of their few remaining assets or precious cap space and would likely return a player that might get a few headlines but wouldn't make much of a difference in the win column. The margin of error is so small that a mistake like that could be absolutely devastating to a franchise that has had nothing but bad luck for years now. They simply aren't ready for win-now moves, and the consequences of jumping the gun too quickly are steep (just ask the Nets).
It's not fun, but the Lakers will have to be incredibly shrewd with their assets this year. They need to continue to search for under-appreciated young talent while doing what they can to add draft picks. Maybe they will be able to find a diamond in the rough. Meanwhile, they can rent out cap space if need be the way they did in the Jeremy Lin trade in exchange for more picks to add to their nearly-empty war chest.
Above all else, they must resist the temptation to sign a Luol Deng or Rajon Rondo-type player or trade for big money, low production "stars". Those are band-aid moves. The equivalent of filling an empty stomach with McDonald's instead of waiting a little longer to get to what you are really craving. Sure, it would be satisfying in the short term, but soon you would be wishing that you had waited just a bit longer to find what you truly wanted.
If they play their cards right the Lakers could head into the 2015/2016 season with 2 early 1st round picks added to their roster (Julius Randle and whoever they draft with a top 5 pick this year), young role players like Sacre, Black, Clarkson, and Kelly, plus plenty of cap space to facilitate moves that bring in talent or more picks. Build around youth and make the franchise into the fun, exciting brand that it used to be. Wins will follow eventually as the team is built from the ground up, and when the time is right the opportunity to add championship pieces will present itself.
All it takes is a little patience from the fans, a lot of luck, and a front office with self-control and will power. Let's hope that all involved in Laker land are up to the challenge.
Follow me on twitter @16ringsNBA for all things Lakers!
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