Los Angeles Lakers: Ranking Magic Johnson’s best 2017 offseason moves
Staying patient during free agency
Okay, so this is more of a non-move than it is a move. Either way, the fact that the Lakers didn’t jump the gun and sign a brand-name free agent to a long-term deal was a big win.
Magic and Pelinka went into the offseason with a plan. That plan was to avoid signing free agents to anything other than one-year deals. The end game here was to salvage cap space for next offseason, in hopes of signing two max-contract superstars via free agency.
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There were certainly opportunities for the Lakers to make a mistake. They were mentioned as potential suitors for players such as George Hill, Dion Waiters and Andre Iguodala, but passed on all three likely due to their demand for longer deals. In the end, though, things worked out about as well as Los Angeles could have hoped for.
Their patience landed them Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who met minimal interest after hitting the market late. That presented the Lakers the opportunity to sign him to a hefty, one-year contract. That way, Caldwell-Pope got paid, got an opportunity to earn a long-term deal next offseason, and Los Angeles got a player who could help them stay competitive in 2017-18.
They’ve also added a couple of cheaper options to fill the gaps since then. Tyler Ennis, Vander Blue and Briante Weber will help provide depth without cutting into the Lakers’ 2018 spending power.
Again, they had a plan and they stuck to it. It yielded them one of the 2018 free agency’s top talents, and still keeps them in the hunt for next offseason. Magic works his magic.