The Los Angeles Lakers couldn’t find the success they were looking for last season. They were the reigning NBA Champions and LeBron James had an MVP-caliber year during the first half of the campaign but injuries eventually got the best of the team.
Now, Rob Pelinka is looking forward to adding more talent to get back to basketball’s ultimate stage, knowing that The King isn’t getting any younger and that he needs to make the most of his contract while he still can.
That’s why the Lakers have been linked with multiple stars over the past couple of weeks. And, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times, former Raptors DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry want to play for the purple and gold.
NBA Rumors: Kyle Lowry And DeMar DeRozan Want To Play For The Lakers
Both DeRozan and Lowry have been tied to the Lakers earlier in the past. DeRozan was born and raised in California, and the Lakers were pretty close to trading for Lowry before the deadline. Also, they’re best friends and are interested in playing together again after their years in Toronto:
“The top unrestricted free agents that teams will be pursuing are Toronto point guard Kyle Lowry, Utah point guard Mike Conley and San Antonio shooting guard DeMar DeRozan. DeRozan, who starred at Compton High and USC, has interest in returning home to play for the Lakers, even if it is for less than the $27.7 million he earned last season in San Antonio, according to people not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. Though the Lakers didn’t acquire Lowry at the trade deadline, he remains interested in joining them, according to people with knowledge of his situation,” reported Turner.
Obviously, making the books work will be kind of tricky for the Lakers but they need to get this done if they have the chance, even if that means letting go of other assets such as Talen Horton-Tucker, Alex Caruso, and Kyle Kuzma.
DeRozan and Lowry know firsthand how LeBron James turns the corner in the playoffs, as The King was the Toronto Raptors’ kryptonite year after year. Now, they could finally thrive in the postseason side by side with him.
