Jordan Clarkson has picked up where he left in his Cinderella season last year, but the Los Angeles Lakers guard may see himself continuing his NBA career in a different team this season.
The Los Angeles Lakers may just have to focus on rebuilding the franchise with young talented superstars, with their season potentially doomed again.
Clarkson, so far, is the Lakers' best player this season, averaging 14.9 points, while playing 30.8 minutes per game. The 23-year-old point guard was LA's bright spot last year and continues to play that role this season amid the team's alarming struggles.
But according to Dan Favale of Bleacher Report, Clarkson may not be part of LA's future as the franchise is not ready to invest in the Filipino-American point guard.
Clarkson signed a two-year non-guaranteed contract with the Lakers last year and is about to earn a bit more than $800,000 this year. He is slated to become a free agent in July albeit unrestricted, which means the Lakers could match any team's offer to retain Clarkson.
However, Favale noted that the Lakers matching offer could top $10 million a year against a salary cap of $90 million plus, which could hurt the franchise's change to pursue and sign max-contract players in next summer's free agency.
Favale also suggested that trading Clarkson, along with Nick Young our Lou Williams, could chop down the Lakers' payroll this season, giving them a better shot at keeping its top-three protected first-rounder in June.
It is hard to imagine the Lakers would let go of Clarkson this season, given how Byron Scott seems to trust him playing on the court.
Carter Johnson of Hoops Habit also believes Clarkson is the Lakers' future and is ready to be the team's main guy once Kobe Bryant decides to retire.
Johnson noted: "He has shown that he is the type of player a franchise can rely on to perform night in and night out and should be rewarded with the respect he deserves. If Clarkson continues to make strides in his development the way he has thus far, he may surpass both of his young counterparts as the Lakers' most valuable player going forward."
Trading Clarkson would not be the best option for the Lakers, considering how Julius Randle and D'Angelo Russell, LA's other top youngsters, struggles to find consistency in their game.
With Bryant set to walk away from playing basketball next season, the Lakers need more young talents to develop as heir to Bryant's throne.