Al Horford (Photo : Twitter)
The Los Angeles Lakers are expected to improve, but still fall short of the playoffs this year but next year could be the start of a new era.
The summer of 2015 has ended and the Lakers did not acquire any of the top free agents yet again. Because of their storied tradition, high fan expectations and past success, they always go for the best.
To be fair, they have always been granted some meetings (even two meetings for LaMarcus Aldridge) but they always fall short. Next year, they are linked to the top free agent-to-be Kevin Durant but it may be time for a reality check.
Lakers fan site Lake Show Life did exactly that. It's never too early, they said, to plan for the future-and by "plan" that also includes Plan B, if KD decides to stay or look towards the opposite coast.
One player that has a real chance to move to Tinseltown is DeMar DeRozan. DD is "Straight Outta Compton (High School)" and went to USC for his "one and done" before moving north of the border. If homecomings are the trend, DeRozan would be Laker bound.
Hoops Habit also suggested that this union would be favorable for both sides. DeRozan idolized Kobe Bryant as he grew up and he will get a chance to inherit his team. The Lakers roster is built to play faster (which is why they chose D'Angelo Russell over Jahlil Okafor ) and this is suited for DeRozan to show his full potential.
The Lakers, if they keep their roster as it is, may have cap space to sign two max players. With Roy Hibbert and Kobe Bryant taking about $ 40 million off the table, they can pursue someone like Al Horford with this scenario from Lake Show Life.
"Assuming the Lakers re-sign Hibbert to a reasonable contract, Horford would fit right in as the starting power forward with Julius Randle coming off the bench in a sixth man role the likes of Lamar Odom. This would allow the Lakers to play small, depending on the matchup, with Horford at the five and Randle at the four."
It's still a long shot for the Lakers, but this season will count as their sales pitch for the free agents. If they see the Lakers as a potential winning team with their young talent, the other factors (bigger market, weather) will come into play.
