The Los Angeles Lakers have hit back-to-back roadblocks in their preparations for the next season after Marcus Smart announced his departure from LA. The veteran had earlier declined his $5.4 million player option with the franchise and decided to become an unrestricted free agent. And now, he has decided to join Kevin Durant and Co. for his next stint, but fans are worried about the Lakers’ future.
In a bombshell update, LeBron James announced his decision to move on from the Lakers before next season. That followed Luka Kennard’s trade news, as he decided to move to Phoenix, where he will team up with Devin Booker and new addition Miles Bridges. And now, Smart has followed suit. ESPN analyst Shams Charania shared the news on X:
“Free agent guard Marcus Smart has agreed on a two-year, $13 million deal with the Houston Rockets, plus a player option for the second season, sources tell ESPN.”
Meanwhile, fans are worried about the state the Lakers are in after back-to-back trades and criticized Lakers’ president Rob Pelinka’s vision for the team. A user wrote:
“Lakers got their whole team ransacked”
Another fan wrote:
“”Rob Pelinka watching Smart walk for $13M after opting out… DO SOMETHING BRO””
One more fan was confused with the Lakers president, Rob Pelinka, and his decisions:
“Either Rob is absolutely asleep or we have a massive couple of transactions that will all make sense dropping soon.”
Another fan wrote in the same tone:
“A huge failure by Pelinka for not keeping him. imho”
It seems the Lakers have decided to completely rebuild their roster around Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves for next season, as they are the only two key players remaining on the squad. However, the team has not yet determined the direction they want to go this offseason.
What Can Be The Lakers’ Top Priority In The Offseason?
The Lakers have offloaded some major contracts recently after they gave the biggest deal ever to an uncapped player, Austin Reaves – a 4-year, $185 million extension. However, their frontcourt woes are still as big as ever. Even though Deandre Ayton has opted for his player option, his performance has not provided much help to the team.
Signing a starting center would be the front office’s top priority this offseason, as they have been rumored to be involved with players like Walker Kessler, Daniel Gafford and others. The guard situation is sorted out, but Doncic and Reaves will need efficient wings around them to make them a title-contending squad.
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