Los Angeles Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers and Toronto Raptors are reportedly expected to pursue Mo Bamba in free agency after he didn't receive a qualifying offer from the Orlando Magic.

Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated reported Thursday the Magic haven't ruled out bringing the 24-year-old center back, but they've "set a price for Bamba and are unwilling to go above it," which could allow the Lakers or Raptors to make a free-agent splash.

After three years as a reserve, Bamba stepped into the Orlando starting lineup and produced his best statistical season in 2021-22. He averaged 10.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, 1.5 threes and 1.2 assists while shooting 48 percent from the field, including 38.1 percent from beyond the arc, in 71 appearances.

Those improved numbers combined with his 7'0'', 231-pound frame and 7'10'' wingspan make him one of the most high-upside free agents available this summer despite his inconsistency across four NBA seasons.

In April, Bamba expressed interest in staying with the Magic despite the contract uncertainty.

"I want to be here," he told reporters. "I just want to make that clear. I'll let that stuff handle itself and continue to work."

Now he'll at least get an opportunity to hear pitches from other organizations before deciding whether to return to Orlando.

The Lakers are looking for an infusion of talent around the core tandem of LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Moving Russell Westbrook's contract is unlikely, which means the front office will probably have to rely on a series of smaller moves rather than a blockbuster.

Signing Bamba would allow Davis to play the 4, his preferred position, and give the Lakers more potential on the interior after using a variety of veteran options, including Dwight Howard and DeAndre Jordan, at the 5 last season.

Meanwhile, the Raptors are also seeking an upgrade at center to fill out the frontcourt alongside Pascal Siakam. The combination of Bamba and Siakam (7'3'' wingspan) could create some real issues for opponents trying to attack the rim.

It's quite possible other teams emerge as potential suitors in the coming days, as Bamba's inclusion in the free-agent class came a bit late after the qualifying offer wasn't tendered.

His occasional flashes of All-Star potential are enough to warrant a multiyear contract with the hope he can take his game to that next level with a change of scenery.

The Los Angeles Lakers don't have much wiggle room to add players this summer after Russell Westbrook opted into his $47 million player option. However, that's not preventing the team from looking at ways to improve.

Rival executives believe the Purple and Gold may target Chicago Bulls point guard Coby White in a trade this offseason, according to Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times.

"The Lakers could also look to acquire players via trade, with rival executives believing Chicago's Coby White could be a target," Woike wrote. "Moving Talen Horton-Tucker, a player whose ball-dominant skills are viewed by rival scouts as being redundant with the Lakers' stars, could be a way to upgrade to suit the Lakers' needs."

If the Bulls were to move White, it wouldn't necessarily be surprising, as ESPN's Jonathan Givony previously reported the franchise was open to trading the No. 18 pick in the 2022 draft and potentially White in a package.

White has a $7.4 million salary-cap hit for the 2022-23 season, per Spotrac, while Horton-Tucker has a $10.3 million cap hit.

White would undoubtedly be an upgrade from Horton-Tucker. The 22-year-old averaged 12.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 61 games last season while shooting 43.3 percent from the floor and 38.5 percent from deep.

While his numbers declined from the 2020-21 campaign, White averaged 27.5 minutes last season, compared to 31.2 minutes during the season prior. In addition, he started just 17 games last season compared to 54 in 2020-21.

Horton-Tucker, meanwhile, averaged 10.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 60 games with the Lakers last season while shooting 41.6 percent from the floor and just 26.9 percent from deep.

The Purple and Gold finished the 2021-22 season with the NBA's ninth-worst three-point percentage (34.7 percent), and there's no question they need to add shooting around Westbrook, LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

The Athletic's Jovan Buha reported the Lakers' focus in free agency is two-way wings, but adding White, who has shot well from deep over his three-year career, via trade would also help the team's outside shooting struggles.

In addition, White could handle starting point guard duties if Westbrook were to underperform again this coming season, so acquiring him could prove to be a valuable addition.

Westbrook averaged just 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists last season while shooting 44.4 percent from the floor and a dismal 29.8 percent from deep in 78 games. It was one of his worst seasons in the NBA.

The Lakers are hoping to reach the playoffs next season after finishing 11th in the Western Conference during the 2021-22 campaign. However, it could be difficult given the way the team has been built.

It would appear that the Los Angeles Lakers will be running it back with Russell Westbrook.

The veteran point guard picked up his $47.1 million player option for the 2022-23 season, per Jovan Buha of The Athletic, and "though a Westbrook trade is still possible, the Lakers are currently planning on beginning next season with him on the roster."

Buha noted that the only scenarios in which the Lakers would trade Westbrook would be to a team that had the cap space to absorb his enormous deal without demanding multiple first-round picks in return to take on that contract, or in a deal for a star player like Kyrie Irving.

Both options seem far-fetched at best, and thus, Buha noted that the "the front office has been telling those around the team for weeks that Westbrook will be a Laker at the start of training camp."

Year One of that experiment went horribly. The Lakers finished 33-49 and missed the playoffs, LeBron James and Anthony Davis missed a big chunk of the season because of injuries, Westbrook never fit in with either when they were healthy and played poorly in general, and a poorly constructed roster that lacked perimeter shooting and plus defenders limped to the finish line.

In an ideal world, the Lakers would move on from Westbrook, whose ball-dominant style, lackluster defense and poor perimeter shooting always made him a questionable fit with James and AD.

But trying to find a team willing to take on a $47.1 million contract—especially for a Lakers team with limited future draft capital and few young, intriguing players to sweeten the pot—has clearly proven impossible.

So the Lakers will run it back and hope that Westbrook can better blend in with the team's two stars.

"(We) have just been honest about how we think he fits with this team and what we expect of him next year if he decides to opt in next year,” general manager Rob Pelinka told reporters last week. “And he’s ready to embrace the philosophy of defense first, as well, and he's made that clear to Darvin and me..."

Time will tell. History suggests that 33-year-old players with the pedigree of Westbrook—who is a former MVP, nine-time All-Star and two-time scoring champion—can struggle to change their stripes.

But if he doesn't, the 2022-23 season is going to be another long, painful endeavor for these Lakers.

NBA free agency begins Thursday, and the Los Angeles Lakers will have a number of tough decisions to make following a disappointing 2021-22 campaign. However, it appears they know which type of player they want to add when the market opens.

The Purple and Gold are expected to target two-way wings with their taxpayer mid-level exception, according to The Athletic's Jovan Buha:

"With free agency less than 48 hours away, the Lakers are focusing on two-way wings, according to league sources. Most of the hypothetical scenarios for their taxpayer midlevel exception have been centered on signing a wing or two who could come in and start next to [LeBron] James and [Anthony] Davis."

The Lakers will not have much wiggle room to add any significant players this summer after Russell Westbrook opted in to his $47 million player option for the 2022-23 campaign. The franchise has attempted to trade the veteran point guard, but there haven't been many suitors.

Buha previously noted that the Lakers improved their three-point shooting and defensive versatility through the 2022 NBA draft by selecting Michigan State's Max Christie in the second round.

However, that pick probably won't pay off for the Lakers until some time down the road, if at all, which is why they need to add a two-way wing this summer.

It's unclear who the Lakers might be targeting in free agency. However, Gary Harris, Otto Porter Jr. and Danuel House could be intriguing options for the Purple and Gold.

Harris spent the 2021-22 season with the Orlando Magic, averaging 11.1 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.0 steals in 61 games while shooting 38.4 percent from deep. The 27-year-old is a solid defender and also shot 41.3 percent on catch-and-shoot thees last season.

Porter, meanwhile, spent the 2021-22 campaign with the Golden State Warriors, helping the franchise win the 2022 NBA title. Like Harris, the 29-year-old also has a solid mix of three-point shooting and defensive prowess. He averaged 8.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 steals in 63 games while shooting 37 percent from deep.

House could be an option for the Purple and Gold as they previously showed interest in him in December. He spent the 2021-22 campaign split between the Houston Rockets and Utah Jazz, averaging 5.9 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.0 assist in 42 games while shooting 37.6 percent from deep.

Any of these players would help improve the Lakers' three-point shooting and defense. However, it's unclear how much they will be looking for in free agency.

Ahead of the start of the NBA's free-agent negotiating period, the Los Angeles Lakers kept a pair of rotation players from hitting the open market.

The Lakers exercised their $1.9 million team option for Wenyen Gabriel and their $2.4 million team option for Stanley Johnson on Wednesday to retain them for the 2022-23 season.

Spotrac's Keith Smith first reported the team's decisions.

Smith added that Johnson's contract is fully guaranteed, but Gabriel's pact has converted to non-guaranteed. It would become guaranteed if he's still on the roster at the leaguewide guarantee date in January.

The eighth overall pick in the 2015 draft by the Detroit Pistons, Johnson had a bit of a career resurgence in his first season with the Lakers. He initially joined the team in December on a 10-day contract, which ended up getting renewed twice before he was signed for the remainder of the season with a team option for 2022-23.

Johnson appeared in 48 games and made 27 starts for Los Angeles, averaging 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds in 22.8 minutes per game while shooting a career-best 46.6 percent from the field.

He scored in double figures 13 times, putting up a season high 21 points in the second-to-last game of the year. It was also his first time playing over 20 minutes per game since 2017-18, which was his final full season in Detroit.

Gabriel joined the Lakers on a two-way contract in March. The Kentucky product averaged 6.7 points and 4.3 rebounds in 19 games. He had also spent time with the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Clippers during the 2021-22 season.

While retaining Johnson and Gabriel gives the Lakers some frontcourt depth, the team still has some holes to fill if it wants to improve on last season's disappointing 33-49 finish.

As the Los Angeles Lakers look for ways to improve their roster this offseason, Indiana Pacers guard Buddy Hield is one option they are reportedly considering.

Per Matt Moore of the Action Network, the Lakers have "circled back" to Hield as a player of interest.

It's unclear if the Pacers are even looking to move Hield at this point. He's on a descending contract through the 2023-24 season that will pay him a total of $39.1 million in base salary over the next two years.

The Lakers have certainly done their scouting homework on Hield. He's been on their radar for at least 12 months.

On a January episode of his podcast, Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes (h/t CBS Sports' Sam Quinn) reported the Lakers reached out to the Sacramento Kings about a deal for Hield built around Talen Horton-Tucker leading up to the 2021 NBA draft.

According to Haynes, the Kings thought the deal was done around the same time that the Washington Wizards got involved, leading to Russell Westbrook going to Los Angeles instead of Hield.

On the same podcast, Haynes noted the Lakers were "still trying to make" the Hield-for-Horton-Tucker deal happen prior to the Feb. 10 trade deadline.

Instead, the Kings sent Hield, Tyrese Haliburton and Tristan Thompson to the Pacers for Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb, Domantas Sabonis and a 2023 second-round draft pick on Feb. 8.

The Lakers find themselves in a difficult position leading up to the start of free agency Thursday at 6 p.m. ET. They don't have any cap space and traded most of their valuable contracts to the Wizards last offseason in the Westbrook deal.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported on Wednesday's episode of Get Up that there remains a chance the Lakers could still get involved in trade talks for Kyrie Irving if things with the Brooklyn Nets don't go smoothly.

Hield certainly isn't on the same level as Irving, but he's more reliable when it comes to availability. He's missed a total of four games in six seasons. The 29-year-old is a 39.8 percent shooter from three-point range in his career.

Los Angeles is coming off a frustrating and disappointing season. It finished 11th in the Western Conference with a 33-49 record, missing the playoffs for the second time in four seasons since LeBron James signed with the organization.

There is reportedly still some belief within the NBA that superstar guard Kyrie Irving could end up with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Appearing Wednesday on ESPN's Get Up, ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst said multiple NBA executives suggested to him that the Lakers and Brooklyn Nets could revisit trade talks focused on Irving.

In such a scenario, the Lakers would reportedly send guard Russell Westbrook and draft compensation to the Nets for Irving, although Windhorst said the amount of draft compensation is "negotiable."

Irving removed the possibility of signing with the Lakers in free agency from the equation this week when he announced he opted in to the final year of his contract with the Nets at a salary of $36.5 million.

Before Irving opted in, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Kyrie had given the Nets a list of teams he would be interested in getting dealt to as part of a sign-and-trade.

The Lakers were reportedly the only team on that list to express mutual interest in Irving.

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, the Lakers were primarily interested in the idea of Irving opting out and then signing him in free agency rather than having to surrender draft capital.

L.A. only could have signed Kyrie to a $6.5 million exception since it is over the salary cap, which would have represented tremendous value.

Irving decided against leaving $30 million on the table, however, as he opted in and forced the Lakers to potentially consider other scenarios to acquire him.

Any trade of Kyrie to the Lakers would almost certainly have to include Westbrook since his $47 million expiring contract would make the salaries work.

Last offseason, the Lakers acquired Westbrook in a trade with the Washington Wizards for Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in hopes he would be the third star they needed alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

Westbrook is a nine-time All-Star, two-time scoring champion, one-time NBA MVP and likely future Hall of Famer, but the 33-year-old veteran didn't mesh well with the Lakers last season.

He averaged 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and just 29.8 percent from beyond the arc for a Lakers team that missed the playoffs with a 33-49 record and struggled mightily when James and Davis missed time due to injury.

Irving has missed a lot of time in recent years with injuries and not being vaccinated against COVID-19, but the seven-time All-Star remains elite when he plays, averaging 27.4 points, 5.8 assists, 4.4 rebounds, 3.4 three-pointers made and 1.4 steals in 29 games last season.

Kyrie is the type of player who would be able to carry the load if LeBron or AD miss time, plus he already has experience playing alongside James, as they won a championship together with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016.

Irving represents perhaps the Lakers' best chance to win another title with a core of James and Davis, so L.A. has to at least consider the possibility of trading for him.