LA Lakers Trade Rumors: Deal For All-Star Forward Could Happen For Lakers
LA Lakers trade rumors indicate a strong interest in David Lee. The Lakers could use Lee as a starting power forward next season, and it might not be a tough deal to pull off with the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors have been shopping Lee since before the 2015 NBA Draft, mostly because the team needs to deal some salaries to avoid a hefty luxury tax penalty. A report from the New York Daily News on Thursday (July 2) states that the Lakers could have some competition in a trade for Lee. The New York Knicks are also showing interest in the former All-Star.
After the 2015-16 NBA season, David Lee will once again become a free agent, meaning the team that takes him on isn’t locked into a long-term deal. He will earn about $15.5 million for the year, a salary total that the Warriors would like to part with very quickly. As previously reported by the Inquisitr, the Warriors just agreed to a five-year deal with restricted free agent Draymond Green. It will pay him $85 million over the duration of the contract, putting the Warriors pretty far into the luxury tax unless they shed some player salaries.
These LA Lakers trade rumors would certainly be contingent on the team failing to sign either LaMarcus Aldridge or DeAndre Jordan in free agency. Both big men are sought after by the Lakers, but the team hasn’t had a lot of success convincing top-tier free agents to team up with Kobe Bryant. While Bryant is trying to campaign on his own, the Lakers may have to simply revert to trading for star players. That’s how the franchise got Bryant in the first place, and more recently, it’s how the team got all-Star center Dwight Howard.
There is a lot of work left to do by the Lakers this offseason, even as the team looks promising with young players Julius Randle and De’Angelo Russell. Most of the core roster from the 2014-15 NBA season is gone, with Nick Young and Kobe Bryant as the main holdovers. It means the team has a lot of roster spots to fill through free agency or trades with other teams. When a team like the Golden State Warriors is willing to give up a former All-Star who also used to average 20 points and 10 rebounds a night, it’s something to strongly consider.
What the Lakers don’t want to do is wait too long and have a team like the New York Knicks swoop in and make a trade for David Lee first. Knicks fans loved watching Lee when he started his career in New York, so it could be an easy sell for Phil Jackson. If LaMarcus Aldridge ends up signing with the San Antonio Spurs or Phoenix Suns soon, expect the LA Lakers trade rumors to kick into overdrive as the front office starts to get desperate.
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