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The NBA offseason has not been kind to the Los Angeles Lakers, with the storied franchise struggling to find ways to upgrade its roster, as it seems that no notable free agents want to join the Purple and Gold.
After hiring JJ Redick, who has no coaching experience, as their new head coach to replace the fired Darvin Ham, and then selecting LeBron James’ son Bronny James with the No. 55 overall pick in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft, which was a questionable move, the Lakers have fallen flat since the start of NBA free agency.
Their current roster looks remarkably similar to last year’s, with several players — including LeBron James — choosing to return to L.A. for the 2024-25 NBA season, which doesn’t bode very well for the team’s chances of competing moving forward.
After failing to get Klay Thompson to sign on the dotted line, and seemingly missing out on DeMar DeRozan, the Lakers also were unable to land Buddy Hield, who has been linked to them for years.
On “First Things First,” Nick Wright of FOX Sports explained why the Lakers were unable to land Hield from the Philadelphia 76ers and watched him wind up with the rival Golden State Warriors instead.
“The Lakers couldn’t sign Buddy Hield. LeBron James was not taking a discount for them to sign him, they don’t have the money. This was not available to them,” Wright said.
“The Lakers couldn’t sign Buddy Hield. LeBron James was not taking a discount for them to sign him, they don’t have the money. This was not available to them.”
— @getnickwright explains: pic.twitter.com/xMCwsMGxyC
— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) July 5, 2024
At this point, it seems as though all the power within the Lakers organization and the moves it can make comes down to LeBron James, as the team was desperate to keep him and gave him a two-year max contract after he opted out to become a free agent.
Even though the superstar was reportedly open to taking less money in his new contract so the team could sign another star, the Lakers’ front office was unable to get it done, which has resulted in a potentially bleak future for Los Angeles.
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