Jordan Farmar, Jodie Meeks, Wes Johnson, Xavier Henry, Nick Young, Jordan Hill, Chris Kaman all took less to play in LA. That is fact. Not conjecture, not opinion. It is fact.
I do feel the Laker "allure" comes into play at this level... take this small contract to play for X, or this small contract to play for the Lakers in LA? If I'm only making a mil, might as well do it in purple and gold.
But for bigger free agents it's not so much a factor.
I feel it's mostly a factor
after guys become Lakers. It's been a factor for Kobe, Shaq, etc. Right now it doesn't feel like it's there as much, because the guys on the team aren't guys who Mitch or the fans are looking at as being long-term Lakers anyway.