Los Angeles Lakers: 5 bargain bin targets in 2019 NBA free agency

Although the Los Angeles Lakers have two of the top-five players in the league in LeBron James and Anthony Davis, there is still work to be done. If they’re unable to land another top-tier superstar in free agency, they may want to consider these players as potential options to help fill out the roster.

With the addition of LeBron James prior to the start of the 2018-19 campaign, the Los Angeles Lakers had hopes of contending for a playoff spot in the Western Conference. Through the first 34 games of the season, the Lakers were right in the hunt, sitting at the No. 4 spot in the playoff race.

Unfortunately, James went down with a groin injury that kept him out of the lineup for 17 games. Without the four-time MVP in the rotation, Los Angeles produced just six wins during that stretch and went on to miss the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season.

The drama continued into the offseason as the team parted ways with Luke Walton and Magic Johnson abruptly stepped down from his position within the organization. Needless to say, things weren’t going great in La-La land.

Then, the team’s fortunes changed a bit, as the Lakers acquired Anthony Davis via a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans, as first reported by ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Make no mistake, signing AD is a huge plus for the Lakers. However, there is still a ton of work to be done. Depending on when the Davis trade is finalized, and whether or not he opts to waive his $4 million trade bonus, the Lakers could have as little as $23.7 million in cap space to fill out the remaining eight roster spots.

If they strike out in landing the likes of Kawhi Leonard, Kyrie Irving, Kemba Walker or D’Angelo Russell, the Lakers may want to consider these bargain bin free agents.