After an abysmal campaign in Los Angeles, the Lakers entered 2022 free agency with the goal of completely re-shaping the roster.
As a result, it has left a long list of former Lakers on the outside looking in this summer. In fact, a total of 10 players who suited up for the Purple and Gold at some point last season are still unsigned now, over a month into free agency. The list includes Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Avery Bradley, Kent Bazemore, D.J. Augustin, Wayne Ellington, Rajon Rondo, Trevor Ariza, Darren Collison, and Isaiah Thomas.
Now, more than a month into 2022 free agency and with teams around the league all but finished filling out their rosters for the upcoming season, 10 of those 11 veteran players once hand-picked to be the role players to fortify the Lakers’ championship chase are still looking for work.
And the lone player out of that group to latch onto a new team this summer — DeAndre Jordan, who signed for the veteran minimum with the Denver Nuggets — finished last season in Philadelphia after L.A. waived him in March.
Lakers’ players from last year that are still free agents:
Carmelo Anthony
Dwight Howard
Avery Bradley
Kent Bazemore
D.J. Augustin
Wayne Ellington
Rajon Rondo
Trevor Ariza
Darren Collison
Isaiah Thomas
(via @mcten, https://t.co/5zp8UOCeH7) pic.twitter.com/zUbUDl2TmE
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) August 2, 2022
Obviously, the current market is at a stand-still as a result of Kevin Durant’s trade request. Until the situation in Brooklyn works itself out, it’s very possible that we could go a few more weeks without a major signing.
Still, one has to imagine that at least some of these names will generate some level of interest from teams before October. As probably the most valuable contributor, Carmelo Anthony has already been tied to several teams, including the Knicks, Heat, and Warriors.
The Lakers went 10-6 when Anthony made four or more 3s in a game. Vogel even credited Anthony for winning L.A. some games on the defensive side of the ball early in the season, when he had two blocks and a steal against Memphis in late October, and four blocks and two steals against Houston a week later. Anthony was also named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team and climbed past Moses Malone from No. 10 to No. 9 on the all-time scoring list.
Anthony can still help the Lakers, but there is a clear emphasis on younger players off the bench. New York has two open roster spots and possibly more if a Donovan Mitchell trade occurs. A return to his former team is Anthony’s best option
Dwight Howard is another name that should emerge more frequently as the summer draws to a close. He didn’t play a huge role for the Lakers this past season, but he was still an effective big man and played his role to perfection. Now, he’s apparently eyeing a jump to the WWE if he doesn’t get another chance in the NBA.
As for everyone else on the list (Rondo, Bradley, Bazemore, Thomas, and others), it remains to be seen if they’ll ever get another multi-year, guaranteed contract again. Their performance in the 2021-22 campaign exposed the state of their game, and teams are likely to look elsewhere before inking any of these other guys a long-term deal.
In truth, it’s pretty telling that only two out of 10 former Lakers are likely to be on a team by the start of the season. These are the guys that LeBron James and Russell Westbrook were going to war with just a few months ago. Now, none of them may have an NBA home before the new season kicks off.
