The Los Angeles Lakers have a lot of luxuries heading into the offseason, capped with the fact that the team is set to get their hands on one of the top two picks of the coming NBA draft as well as the 27th overall.
More so, the Lakers have the option to trade Jordan Hill and Nick Young, a move that would help free up some more cap space for the free agents they are targeting.
It is no secret that the Lakers are going to try and lure Kevin Love, Marc Gasol, LaMarcus Aldridge and Greg Monroe into the fold. But seeing that all other teams are practically doing the same, it may be wise to place their ambitions down a notch.
There are a lot of other players the Lakers could land, ones who have proven that they can play ball. Among the less popular names in the coming NBA free agency include Ty Lawson of the Denver Nuggets, DeMar DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors and Nicolas Batum of the Portland Trailblazers
Lawson has been mentioned as someone not included in the Nuggets future plans and the pint-sized guard is expected to be traded soon. The Lakers could be a good fit, considering they need a spunky guard to lead the Laker charge heading into next season.
DeMar Derozan has shown his prowess though it remains to be seen if the Raptors are breaking up the backcourt combo involving him and Kyle Lowry. If the Lakers can get their hands on DeRozan, they stand to land another high-scoring player who can take charge at any time when the need arises.
Batum provides the outside sock, something the Lakers are sorely lacking. If the Trailblazers do intend to part with Batum, the Lakers are bound to benefit from his outside scoring prowess though consistency could be a concern.
The Lakers have a lot of options in the offseason and surely we will see a lot of new faces when the next season starts. The only concern right now is choosing wisely and figuring out if their targets do deserve to wear the purple and gold in Hollywood.
