**LA LAKERS THREAD** Sitting on 17! 2023-2024 offseason begins

[pmatic]

I think AD will re-sign a 2+1 deal, but a 1+1 would give the Lakers more flexibility.

 

[tay1]

I think AD will re-sign a 2+1 deal, but a 1+1 would give the Lakers more flexibility.

I think he does a 1+1 to align with Brons contract

 

[thasoleful1]

I hope Rondo gets his last bag, his services was greatly appreciated.

 

[had pants]

 

[pmatic]

McMenamin says Bradley is going to opt out.

 

[DLF]

I thought this offseason was suppose to be one with few teams with money....yet all of our players are opting out LOL. wtf is going on.

 

[CP1708]

Spoiler

Lakers needed Dennis Schröder, but allowed Thunder to cash in on Danny Green


Give the Lakers credit: They’re not resting on their laurels.

With one championship in the bag, the Lakers are still moving forward to address perceived weaknesses and steel themselves for a run at a back-to-back. Whatever else you think of the reportedly agreed-on trade of Danny Green and the 28thpick in the draft for Dennis Schröder, let’s at least acknowledge that.

As far as the actual execution of the trade they made to do this … ehhh. I have some questions.

At a base level, I get it. The Lakers were likely to lose Rajon Rondo to free agency or face a situation where keeping him would have required going into exception money. That money could otherwise be used on players who are likely to be quite a bit better next season than Rondo.

Also, even with Rondo, L.A. had a clear issue with its lack of secondary shot creators, one that became particularly apparent any time LeBron James checked out of the game. Schroeder has his share of weaknesses, but shot-creation ain’t one of them. His 27.2 Usage Rate actually led the Thunder last season, and late-game situations often saw the ball in his hands. Particularly in the high-leverage playoff situations where the Lakers expect to find themselves, perimeter shot-creation matters. In contrast, last season the Lakers didn’t have any player other than James and Anthony Davis with a playoff Usage Rate above 20.

Finding those creators is justifiably difficult, especially when you don’t have a ton of assets to use as chips for the shopping. Danny Green was the only plausible matching contract L.A. had lying around, and the 28th pick is not an unreasonable price to pay for a full year of his services before his contract expires (and Bird Rights afterward). Consider that the pick just before, number 27, was dealt in February for Marcus Morris’s expiring contract by a Clipper team in a similar situation.

Meanwhile, one presumes Green’s 3-and-D game was seen as more replaceable by the Lakers’ brass. Green played 25 minutes per game in L.A.’s playoff run – barely half the game, in other words – as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso often proved just as useful. And if Avery Bradley, who sat out the bubble, is back next year, that’s another wing to compete for minutes with Green.

Incidentally, this trade is amazing news if you’re Caldwell-Pope. The Lakers now will almost certainly need to use Bird Rights to retain him in free agency. Cha. Ching.

Finally, to the extent long-term considerations matter for a team in the Lakers’ position, trading Green for Schröder is helpful. The Lakers will never, ever be a cap room team with LeBron James and Anthony Davis on max deals, which makes it more imperative to use Bird Rights to retain players. Retaining the 27-year-old Schröder after this season is likely a much better investment than the 33-year-old Green.

However, the Lakers left money on the table, and you can see why once you look at this deal from the Thunder’s perspective. For OKC, this is an absolute no-brainer, as harvesting a late first-round pick for a non-All-Star with an expiring contract is about the best-case scenario.

Additionally, the Thunder will gain more draft equity out of this later. At some point, the rebuilding Thunder will almost certainly trade Green, too. He may not be worth a first-round pick, but he surely could command two decent seconds. Can you imagine him in Philadelphia? Milwaukee? Atlanta? The Thunder should be able to drive a pretty good bargain here.

In the meantime, there’s the little issue of Green projecting as a more valuable player than Schröder. Ignoring the specific situational need for L.A. that I presented above, BORG projects Green to be 2.73 points per 100 possessions better than replacement in 2020-21, compared to 1.78 for Schröder. The reason why is simple: Green is just a massively better defender.

Also, secondarily, Schröder comes off what is by far the best season of his career, and one that was built in part on outlier 3-point shooting relative to the rest of his career. One should be at least somewhat skeptical that he can play another season at quite his 2019-20 level.

Finally, to the extent the Thunder are actually trying to win games this season, this deal clearly helps them. For as long as Green plays for the Thunder, he fits much better as a 3-and-D guard next to Chris Paul and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander than Schröder did.

From the Thunder’s perspective, then, this is a scream of a deal. They get a better player and a first-round pick and still will be able to convert Green into more draft equity sooner or later. In the meantime, now owning picks Nos. 25 and 28 in the first round, the Thunder are in a prime position to move up in the draft should an opportunity present itself.

Which takes us back to the Lakers. The important part of this deal for Oklahoma City was getting a first for Schröder, not acquiring a 33-year-old Danny Green. Green had to be in the deal because it was the Lakers’ only plausible matching contract, but they could have done some advance work here and come out of this considerably better.

Most obviously, the Lakers could have done the same deal the Thunder did but with Green, by canvassing the league to deal him for expiring contracts and draft equity (likely second-round picks, as noted above). I don’t know what Green’s trade value was, but I have a hard time believing it was zero. Having taken that first step, the Lakers then could have rerouted those expirings and the 28th pick to Oklahoma City in a three-team deal.

Instead, the Lakers let the Thunder win this trade twice: First, by turning Schröder into a late first, and then a second time when the Thunder inevitably trade Green. Additionally, the Lakers could have controlled Green’s ultimate destination and made sure he landed in the Eastern Conference. Now, it’s out of their hands. He could be a Clipper or Warrior before Thanksgiving; in particular, Green’s salary slots right into that giant trade exception the Warriors have.

We weren’t tapping the Lakers’ phone calls, so it’s possible the Lakers tried and nobody was ready to deal yet. The date of the draft certainly provided a hard timeline for completing this. Nonetheless, they got this done so early that circumstantial evidence would tell you the answer. Most likely, L.A wasn’t blowing up the phone lines exhausting this opportunity before diving into a Schröder deal.

No, this isn’t the end of the world, particularly when you have LeBron James and Anthony Davis on your side. The Lakers saw an opportunity to attack a weakness that can prove difficult to fill, the cost was reasonable (we all get excited on draft day, but historically the 28th pick busts nearly two-thirds of the time), and they got six years younger on the exchange. One can still lament that they failed to optimize the situation by turning Green into something first.

Sorry, but what the **** is he babbling about?

This the dumbest article I've ever read.

 

[CP1708]

He didn't even take into account the quick turnaround, Danny's age and injuries.

Or the fact that it's possible Schroder plays great with Bron/AD occupying defenses.

 

[MVP]

I thought this offseason was suppose to be one with few teams with money....yet all of our players are opting out LOL. wtf is going on.

The sorry ones all got money. If Bradley leaves, Wes replaces him and we can use all of the MLE. Not a bad scenario.

 

[essential1]

I thought this offseason was suppose to be one with few teams with money....yet all of our players are opting out LOL. wtf is going on.

AD is expected. He’s getting a max regardless of the financial times.

Javale and Bradley and whoever else will opt out on any team probably want to see if they’ll get multi-year deals. If not they’ll find teams to give them the money they would’ve gotten had they opted in. Guys who opt in, know they can’t get that salary number or even remotely close on a multi-year. See Nic Batum.
Teams will be frugal, but still have to field a minimum salary floor.

 

[thasoleful1]

Bradley opting out might be a good thing, I don’t see his market increasing

 

[alfa]

I dig the trade for Schroeder. Dude is a competitor and hopefully gives us a potential high reward in being a consistent 3rd option, and some backcourt insurance. If he doesn't fit, he can probably be flipped.

I appreciated the defensive effort that Danny Green provided and his contributions to this last chip. Those brick 3-balls were unfortunate, but part of the game. Hopefully, finding another 3 and D guy who fits the scheme should be relatively easy and things aren't working out by mid-season, there's always a trade or free agent/waiver market to find one.

 

[Brosizzlew30.23]

Bradley is outta here. We gotta keep KCP imo unless we get a massive upgrade at shooting guard.

I'm confident Pelinka gonna give KCP what he deserves.

A guard lineup of Schroder, KCP, Caruso, Waiters, and THT is solid imo.

Beef up the bigs with Dwight, Boogie, and Kieff, plus maybe add another PF (Marcus Morris anyone?) to replace Dudley and/or Kuzma and we straight.

 

[sb]

you wrong for putting that much hair on lebron.

 

[sb]

i like this schroeder trade for green and 28. i hope bogie resigns too. i dont lakers will move kuzma.

 

[htg designs]

If LA dont get a great deal, they should hold Kuzma til the trade deadline to see how things shakenout in the league and their roster.

 

[pmatic]

 

[drewsone]

Wonder if Dwight comes back and boogie too
Boogie at 60% > Javale
Would prefer Javale leave but he can be the regular szn body they need as boogie gets back into form

serge would be kinda ideal but no sure how realistic that is
Wes would be a solid pick up imo yes he’s kinda old and whatever but I think he’ll be fine since the lakers will have such a defined niche role for him

 

[DLF]

If rondo is gone. That means we’ve lost two of our veterans. Will def need to bring Dudley back. If you heard the podcasts you know that green and rondo were very vocal leaders and in breaking down film etc.

 

[BIG LEEMELONE]

Kuz can't really get traded unless he's extended. KCP will get paid too. If KCP gets 15 and Kuz gets around 12, that's enough to trade for a max player. Kuz would have a lot more value in the starting lineup

 

[pmatic]

Help.

 

[lovehateself]

I thought this offseason was suppose to be one with few teams with money....yet all of our players are opting out LOL. wtf is going on.

most of the back ups played on vet minimum deals
coming off a chip, why wouldnt they finesse into more guaranteed money on 2-3 deals instead of 1 year contracts
while only a few teams have blank checks to offer. most of the nba can offer multiple year deals in the 3-5-9 mil per year

 

[lovehateself]

Help.

finna lose both rondo and kcp to ATL

give KCP 3 year 30 mil, do it rob

 

[CHAOSE57]

I don't see it with Boogie, unless he signs up for the low low then sure. I might be wrong but dude was a defensive liability last time he was playing.

 

[trynafeelmink]

Boogie is definitely taking the minimum for the Lakers i see no reason for him not too. Preferably i would love Dwight taking Javale's Role with Boogie & Cacok off the bench