Los Angeles Lakers: 5 Free Agents they should target this offseason

#3 Jae Crowder

The third player is Miami Heat forward, Jae Crowder. Crowder would be a key bench player if he were to sign with the Lakers. He is a defensive specialist that can completely shut down some of the league’s greatest players.

This would be extremely useful for the Lakers as it would give LeBron a break on the defensive side of the ball and focus on being the focal point and running the offense against teams with multiple star wings like the Clippers.

Crowder may be difficult to take from under the Heat’s nose. He is a model player for the “Heat brand of basketball” meaning that he is a hard-nosed and physical competitor who works extremely hard and is always showing effort. Also, the Heat just acquired Crowder in a trade from the Memphis Grizzlies along with Andre Iguodala.

Iggy recently signed a massive extension with the Heat for a player of his age and caliber. This could mean that the money could also be no issue for the Heat when pursuing Crowder too which is a luxury that the Lakers cannot afford to have.

However, if the Heat does decide to let Crowder walk or Rob Pelinka and the rest of the Lakers organization make a pitch that is good enough to have Crowder suiting up in the purple and gold next season at or under the mid-level exception, by all means, they should. He could be yet another defensive anchor on one of the best teams defensively in the entire NBA.