As a part of our series detailing which players the Charlotte Hornets should target in NBA free agency, our attention shifts to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers finished with a 33-49 record, which earned them an 11th-place finish in the Western Conference.
I do not need to tell you that this was an embarrassing performance from one of the league’s most historic franchises. With so many players coming and going from season-to-season, the Lakers’ roster consists of a multitude of upcoming free agents.
Starting with the team’s restricted free agents, there is not a lot here for Charlotte to look at. Jay Huff, Mason Jones, Quincy Douby, and Mac McClung highlight LA’s restricted players, and while McClung has a shot at being an NBA rotation player, he is not there yet.
Moving on to player and team options, the Lakers have Wenyen Gabriel, Austin Reaves, and Stanley Johnson potentially coming back on team options. On the flip side, Kendrick Nunn and Russell Westbrook have player options for the 2022-23 season.
Onto unrestricted free agents, LA has to decide who to retain out of the following: D.J. Augustin, Malik Monk, Kent Bazemore, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Wayne Ellington, Avery Bradley. That is a lot of free agent decisions to make for one offseason. When coupled with the laundry list of options and restricted free agents, the Lakers roster may look drastically different next season.