The Los Angeles Lakers and the New York Knicks are among the teams eyeing Atlanta Hawks wingman Kent Bazemore in this summer's free agency.
Bazemore earned a lot of attention heading into free agency after establishing himself as an integral part of the Hawks' success in the past two seasons. According to a report from Sports Illustrated's Fansided, the Lakers and Knicks are among the NBA teams looking to acquire the service of the 26-year-old forward.
Bazemore has spent time playing for the Lakers during the 2013-2014 regular season, but only for a total of 23 games, where he averaged 13.1 points and 3.3 rebounds, while playing for 17.7 minutes per contest.
Despite probably commanding a more lucrative deal once the market opens, the Lakers still have a great shot at getting Bazemore back, with LA having a projected max caps space of $62.6 million to pursue top free agents. Bazemore would also be a great addition to the team's young core of talents and should fit well in Luke Walton's playbooks.
On the other hand, the Knicks could also make a run at Bazemore to improve the team's depth at small forward. Bazemore has played for the Hawks as a three-and-D guy, but his athleticism also makes him a fit to run Jeff Hornacek's up-tempo offense.
Unlike the Lakers, the Knicks only have a projected $30 million in cap space, which would probably only suffice for keeping the team's own free agents and adding pieces on small contracts. And with Bazemore bound to earn more money this summer, there is little chance the Knicks could sign him up even for a short-term deal.
Meanwhile, Bazemore, who signed a two-year $4 million pact with the Hawks in 2014, has expressed his desire to stay in Atlanta, although that may change if teams like the Lakers and Knicks offer more lucrative deals.
There is a growing sense the Hawks would use all their convincing powers to keep Bazemore, especially if Al Horford decides to stay in Atlanta. But with the team only expected to have $34.6 million of cap space in free agency, keeping him may compromise the chance for the Hawks to improve their roster in free agency.