The LA Lakers are expected to be active in free agency this summer, as players like Jimmy Butler, Dwyane Wade, Goran Dragic, Rajon Rondo and Greg Monroe are potential free agent targets and this comes as the team is zeroing in on either Jahlil Okafor or D'Angelo Russell as draft targets with Karl-Anthony Towns reportedly going to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Lakers are coming in with over $20 million in cap space to spend and depending on how the draft goes likely will dictate who the team goes after in free agency. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, Jimmy Butler could be a possibility for the Lakers, as he is interested in signing a short term contract over a max deal. The Bulls obviously are going to do all they can to keep him since he is a restricted free agent, but the Lakers could take advantage of the situation if the Bulls do not want to go with a big money, short term deal.
Butler is not the only high profile player that the Lakers could go after, as Chris Mannix at SI.com writes that Dwyane Wade could be an option for the team. Wade is dealing with a contract issue with the Miami Heat and there is a good chance that he will opt out of his contract this summer. Miami is still interested in keeping Wade, but so far the two sides have not been able to close the gap on compensation. Mannix writes that there is "mutual" interest according to league sources and that Wade could consider the Lakers if the Heat play hard ball.
Mannix added that LA has "money to burn" and if things don't work out with their top free agent targets, Wade could be the option. The Lakers are also likely to go after a point guard on the market, as names like Reggie Jackson, Rajon Rondo and Goran Dragic are set to be available. All of that could change for the Lakers if D'Angelo Russell is their pick in the draft, but right now it looks like they will be chasing Dragic and Rondo.
According to Pro Basketball Talk, the Lakers would like to sign Rondo, but only at a "certain price," while the team may consider a max offer for Dragic. The Miami Herald reported that the Heat are looking at offering Dragic five years but below the max money on their contract offer and that could at least open him up to consider other teams. Dragic reportedly wants to stay in Miami because they can offer him the most, but if the team goes low on the contract, there is a chance he could go to NY or Los Angeles, as they have a ton of cap space.
The Lakers first priority before free agency though is the draft and that will impact things a great deal. Reports have Karl-Anthony Towns going to the Timberwolves and that is not a surprise to anyone, which leaves the Lakers with a big choice: Jahlil Okafor or someone else. D'Angelo Russell is getting attention as a poetical pick there, but the consensus has Towns and Okafor as the two best players, so the Lakers would be going against the grain by avoiding the Duke star.
