Lakers: Three reasons signing Andrew Bogut was the right move
By Keith Rivas
Bogut might help keep Jordan Clarkson from being traded
Believe it or not, signing Andrew Bogut was a big step for the Lakers because it directly affected one teammate in particular. Jordan Clarkson has been rumored to be the guy traded if the Lakers front office decides they need or want more cap space at any given point.
He’s proven to be a solid shooting guard, especially after his role switched to coming off the bench last year, but that doesn’t mean the Lakers will keep him in their plans for the future. Now that Bogut also has a one year deal, Los Angeles could be faced with a mass exodus.
Other players that have an expiring deal after this season include Corey Brewer, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Brook Lopez. When you include Bogut, that’s two centers, a forward and a shooting guard that will potentially be out by summertime.
Both Caldwell-Pope and Lopez are expected to start, with Brewer and Bogut trying to help from the bench. This means that the Lakers might automatically be looking to fill those spots with bigger stars when the time comes.
LeBron James, Paul George, and Russell Westbrook have all been linked to the Los Angeles Lakers and their attempt at landing one of the game’s giants in free agency not far from now. If they don’t need to get rid of Jordan Clarkson for the cap space to sign a max deal or two, they shouldn’t.
By signing Bogut, they bought Clarkson time to prove he still belongs and isn’t going to be worth trading and instead should stick around. You can also thank all of the one-year deals on their books for that.