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Michael Dwyer / Associated Press
The doorbell rings at the free NBA agency at 3 pm on Thursday, and defending champion Los Angeles Lakers seems to be busy trying to fill his squad in search of a second consecutive title.
The guard is a key position in your hunt, with Kyle Lowry and George Hill among the main targets.
Acquiring them could mean giving up pieces that were instrumental in last year’s championship, like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Before Thursday’s active afternoon, take a closer look at these three players and their prospects sporting purple and gold for the rest of the season.
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Gerald Herbert / Associated Press
Appearing on ESPN’s The jump, Brian Windhorst reported that the Lakers are willing to move guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Connected to the Caldwell-Pope conversation is that the Lakers are not willing to include a choice of draft or Talen Horton-Tucker.
In a list of aging players built for the here and now, Horton-Tucker is a young piece that LA can shape and grow for the future. It makes sense that the team is not willing to let you go at this point.
As for Caldwell-Pope, his score has steadily declined over the past three years, despite the fairly consistent playing time over that period. He hit 40.1 percent of his three-point attempts, however, and that will attract potential suitors.
The question is whether the Lakers can deliver a firearm that is the sixth in the team to score when LeBron James and Anthony Davis are both off the pitch due to injuries and positioning in the playoffs is critical.
At $ 12 million, Caldwell-Pope’s salary is not one that will make a big difference in the trading market, but together with another player, he can easily pave the way for the Lakers to get a big fish and place them on the proverbial ledge while looking for a repeat of the championship.
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Jacob Kupferman / Associated Press
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported during the Woj and Lowe Trade Deadline Special that the Lakers should not be prevented from acquiring the Raptors’ guard, Kyle Lowry (h / t Christian Rivas of SB Nation).
“The Raptors, Masai Ujiri, Bobby Webster, the front office, they will work with Kyle Lowry and his agent Mark Bartelstein where he would like to play if they are going to make a deal, but here is a team that does not rule this out between now and the negotiation deadline: the Lakers, “said Wojnarowski.
It is no surprise that LA is so interested in possibly switching over to the veteran guard.
Lowry is two years away from an NBA championship in Toronto. He understands what it takes to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy and averages 17.1 points, 6.3 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game in the postseason for the Raptors.
Acquiring Lowry would not be cheap, however. To sign him, it would probably be necessary to unload two or three players with Toronto, as well as choices in the draft, to really make the Raptors’ time count.
Anyway, ESPN’s Zach Lowe added to Woj’s report (h / t The Philly Voice’s Kyle Neubeck) that Lowry’s situation will “reach the limit”.
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David Zalubowski / Associated Press
The Lakers, rival Clippers and the Philadelphia 76ers arrived in Oklahoma City in relation to veteran point guard George Hill, according to Jake Fischer of B / R.
“The asking price of the Thunder seems clear. ‘They are willing to [both] take it back and change the salary for recruitment compensation, ‘said a Western Conference official, “reported Fischer.
The report also stated that while neither the Lakers nor the Clippers have any compensation in the first round to play, they hope that Oklahoma City will agree to a purchase with Hill. History, however, does not suggest that this will be the case.
Hill has an average of 11.8 points in 26.4 minutes from the ground and is dropping 50.8 percent of his pitches from the ground. A veteran player, he has experience in the postseason and would serve as a perfect second option if the Lakers fail to place Lowry.