Los Angeles Lakers: 3 free agents team could still sign in 2017
Shabazz Muhammad, SF
I’m a big fan of high-upside fliers, especially cheap ones. When I take a look at the Lakers’ current roster, I don’t see a ton of them as we inch closer to the start of training camp. Shabazz Muhammad, however, fits the bill well enough.
Sure, he’s been a bit of bummer through four NBA seasons. The former lottery pick of the Minnesota Timberwolves hasn’t quite lived up to the buzz that surrounded him coming out of UCLA. And yet, there’s still got to be some untapped potential there — a team just needs to give him a shot.
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So why shouldn’t that team be the Lakers? It’s not like they have a ton to lose heading into the 2017-18 campaign.
More than likely, they’ll be a subpar team in a loaded Western Conference. This season will be more about developing young talent, continuing to roll out Magic Johnson and Luke Walton‘s long-term plan and showing enough on the court to lure in top free agents. Muhammad may not fit that plan perfectly, but he’d be a solid roll of the dice nonetheless.
It also helps that Muhammad is a Long Beach native who played his college ball in Los Angeles. Signing with the Lakers would be an opportunity to return to his old stomping grounds, where he was seen as a rising star in the basketball world.
Considering he’s lasted on the market this long, Muhammad could likely be convinced to sign for the four-year veteran minimum of $1.57 million. It’s not a lot of money, but it gives him an opportunity to prove himself in one of the NBA’s biggest markets. A strong season could even convince the Lakers to let him be a part of the massive turnaround scheduled for next year.