Hesitant to spend money on non-superstars, yet unlikely to sign LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony, the Lakers have been forced to explore alternative free-agent signings that won't sabotage future plans.
Contingency explorations have led them to the Toronto Raptors point guard, according to David Aldridge of NBA.com, who writes that while the "Raps have a decent shot at keeping" Lowry, there "will be suitors—and the Lakers are at the top of the list."
Whisking Lowry out of Toronto is a thorny endeavor that may end in failure. But the Lakers owe it to themselves and their hope of salvaging today without it coming at the expense of tomorrow to try.
Realistic Range of View
If the Lakers are actually interested in Lowry, it means they're interested in making a free-agency splash. And if they're interested in making a free-agency splash, they have to be realistic.
One year ago, their sights were set on James and Anthony. Now it's time to turn attentions elsewhere.
Like, right now.
On the heels of James and Anthony opting out of their contracts with the Miami Heat and New York Knicks respectively, ESPN.com's Marc Stein and Brian Windhorst say the Lakers are among the teams eyeing both superstars. Not just one of them. Both.
Opening up the necessary cap space to make this happen isn't impossible. The Lakers can use their No. 7 pick—the actual player, since they cannot trade the pick—to grease the wheels of a Steve Nash salary dump, leaving them with only two guaranteed contracts in Robert Sacre and Kobe Bryant.
Sacre and Bryant's pacts total less than $24.5 million. If the Lakers keep Kendall Marshall, Ryan Kelly and Kent Bazemore while renouncing every other free agent, they could have $32-plus million in cap...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
