🆕LA Lakers Free Agency News And Updates - Rob Pelinka Reacts To 2020 Free Agency| FYF Sports Debates

Back on AXS in the last two seasons, Rob Palenka rebuilt the Lakers roster from lottery picks to LeBron AD and former champs that led to the Lakers 17th title. He went on the Woj podcast and explained how the special bond between LeBron and AD set the tone for the roster. I think that really both LeBron and AD have approached their partnership and their relationship through that lens of like I want to I want to do everything I can to help the other guy and you could you could just see that lived out in little things. It started with hey do you want do you want number 23 and and that's just been a thread of kind of of of putting aside like self-interest and hey what's best for me and thinking through hey how can I help this other guy out and I'll start with AD. AD did that throughout the season. I think his theme from the beginning of camp when coach Vogel stamped our team as a defensive team was to was to challenge and to encourage LeBron to be defensively great which he which LeBron was in the bubble and was one of the keys to our success. LeBron's leadership in terms of what does it take to keep your body functioning at the highest of level. You could see AD learning how to battle through that process and make it battle through injuries and stay on the court. To have ownership you know president GM and and coach connectedness around a player is the only way you can get to the end and I think as I said in the beginning Jeannie sets the tone for that. I say this to people all the time general manager like the the word manager is a big part of that. Yes do you have to go to you know Europe and be in gyms at all over the hours of the night to find the next great player? Sure but so much more of it is keeping everything functioning smoothly and that that's managing the relationships and I think we've done that really really well. Now Rob and the Lakers added nine new players to the roster this season. Next season could present similar challenges. Five vets have player options for the upcoming season. Bradley, AD, KCP, JaVale and Rondo. Five more are free agents. Dudley, Dwight, Markeith, J.R. Smith and Deion Waiters. So Kyle Gu and the Lakers have kind of been in this position before just a season ago. Can they do it again? Will they do it again? Let's start there. Yeah I mean I think there's a lot of factors that will allow them to build at least a championship competitive roster. I mean I think you know at a certain point everything is a little bit of give and take and will things break your way but I think the conditions are such that the salary cap is a little uncertain. So there might be less money overall in free agency anyway so you might have some vets hitting the market and saying you know what I've made some money I want to win a ring and this seems like a great situation to do it. There's going to be some tough decisions as you guys mentioned with Rajon Rondo, with Dwight Howard. Can those guys come back in? Can the Lakers retain them? But if they are looking to repeat I think the Lakers bring them back then there's a couple other options that we can get into a little more. Yeah this happens with every championship team in just about every pro sport. You're going to get plundered by other teams that say hey you know what that guy looked good in the playoff run this guy could help us you know. Other teams are going to want part of that Laker magic you know any championship team really. And so the Lakers are going to lose some people. There's no way this roster is going to be intact it just isn't. I think that's pretty evident to most people. The question is who do they really want to keep and how much are they willing to pay them? The key point for the Lakers, speaking dollars and cents here, they don't want to go too far into the into the cap as far as multi-year deals. Hang on Brez stop right there. What is the salary cap? What is it? Because I don't know. Yeah we're all waiting for that. That's still way up in the air. Hopefully we're going to find out within a couple weeks. But there's so many variables. Obviously no attendance once there was a shutdown. No concessions. No parking. No merchandise at individual arenas. So how does that affect everything? No ticket sales. The most important thing. So will the salary cap be depressed? I'm sure it will be. How much will be depressed is the big question. Then you look at the Lakers. They don't want anyone really on their cap after this upcoming season. Obviously LeBron's still going to be there. A couple other players as well. They're going to want to save a lot of money to go for some big name free agents a little less than a year from now. Yeah. And actually I think what a lot of teams are anticipating is the salary cap is going to stay the same as this year at about 109. The key number is the luxury cap figure. How far can the Lakers spend above the salary cap? And that's going to be tricky for guys like Casey P who's probably going to opt out of his deal. He's he would make 8 million if he opts in. He can probably make way more than that if he opts out. And so the Lakers have the ability to sign above the salary cap to bring back a guy like Casey P. But how far above can they sign them? And is somebody with cap space going to say, Hey, that guy's a pretty good shooter. He's really rejuvenating his image in the last year. We want him. So I think that that's going to be some of the off season trickiness for the Lakers. Kyle, do you see the Lakers giving a lot of one year deals except for the ad contract, whatever he wants, he can get up to five years obviously, but they want to kind of stay pretty, pretty sound after the season. So they can go out for a guy, maybe like some of the big names out there. I'll let you name the names. Yeah. I mean, well, we all are keeping an eye on the honest, right? I mean that we can't tamper, but you know, I think for the Lakers, a guy like Casey P who is still in his twenties, I mean, for as long as he's been around, Casey B's still a youngish guy, seem like a key piece obviously gets along great with LeBron and AD. He's a foundational piece, but other guys, I mean, you know, you see this line of player options, including JaVale McGee, Rajon Rondo, Avery Bradley guys who will get off the books either way off the, off after next year. I think what we've learned is that there's a lot to figure out. And oh, by the way, you've got about six weeks to do it when you're talking to the NBA. Which speaking of Michelle Roberts, the executive director of the NBPA tells friend of the show, Mark Medina of USA Today. We have free agents that are losing their minds as our teams that want to engage and negotiate. So that's something we don't have the luxury of delaying a decision on. Now, Mark Stein of the New York Times tweets, some teams I'm told are preparing for NBA free agency to begin as early as November 20th or November 21st, 48 to 72 hours after the November 18th NBA draft. If the plan to start the 2020-21 season, December 22nd goes ahead. Further clarity is expected by week's end. I'm already exhausted. But Hey, as much as we are talking about what's to come, we will never stop talking about what has been just like a couple of weeks ago, the Lakers winning their 17th NBA title. Remember that? We do, for sure we do. But for the first time, we get a glimpse into what that arrival home for the champs looked like, felt like, after they were freed from the bubble in what was over three months spent. Take a look. Laker Nation, when it's safe, I look forward to celebrating with you. Until then, I will bring back the trophy to Los Angeles where it belongs. The Lakers touched down in Los Angeles on Monday after being in the Orlando bubble for 95 days. The guys were tired, but still glowing in the glory of winning the title. We ain't been to sleep yet, man. Just fell in for a nap, for sure. AD, don't forget yours. I'm going home, I'm going to eat, and I'm going to sleep. My legs are killing me right now. All the pain just came back. I feel pretty good, I'm not going to lie. I'm a little tired, but man, big time. Our championship, unbelievable feeling. Back in L.A. We're back. Back in L.A. So nice to be home. Man, dream come true. It feels so real. We're talking about it on the plane. Just having that mindset, game six, I think we all knew we were ticked off that we lost game five, get it done, come back here to L.A., man. It's dream come true and ready to go back to Laker Nation. We're out of the bubble, baby, finally. We prevailed as champions outside the bubble. Hard work, three months, over three months. Over 365 days of basketball for us. Thank you very much. You're welcome. Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. A little custom champagne. Yeah, championship sound like it. Locked in. Throughout his time in Orlando, JaVale McGee documented the championship run, and now he has one final moment to capture. You know, Laker Nation, got to bring it home. Got to bring it home. Got to bring it home where it belongs. Much love to Kobe and Gigi for the inspiration along the way. Kobe and Gianna have guided this team the entire year. Kobe's voice is always in my head. Always, every day. Here we go, Mambo on three. One, two, three. Mambo. There would be times in the middle of the night I'd hear his voice. Stay the course. Finish the task. To be able to share this moment right now, knowing that he and Gianna are looking down from heaven. And I know he's a proud friend. I know he is. When I took the job, I remember he told me, he said, hey, I know what you did for me for 20 years. I gave you two, three years. You'll fix this. You'll get the Lakers back on top. And I guess you were right, man. You gave me the energy to do it. Kobe always liked to win every game, every opportunity. And so I think that's what inspired this team and will continue to inspire Laker Nation for all time. For Kobe, I know he's looking down on us super proud for the tragedy. He comes to the game and he'll just tell us, like, this is your year. Go out there and take it. You know, we miss him. This is definitely for him. In the end, a season like no other that brought unthinkable heartbreak as well as momentous change concludes with a silver lining in the form of championship gold. This historic 2020 NBA championship belongs to the Los Angeles Lakers. A 17th trophy driven by all-stars for the ages. A 17th championship tying the all-time record. However, for now, all of Laker Nation can simply bask in this one trophy, one championship, and soon one banner that will live on forever. You see this? Bro, you funny, you a trip. Talking nonsense out your lips. Neighbors, they complaining. Tell you calming down a bit. Now you Mr. Tough guy. Like, **** all that ----. Until them blues come knocking. Now you sounding like a bitch. Oh, you gangsta, think you tough. Knowing you ain't bout that life. Okay, now we call your bluff. It's time that you pay the price. Oh, you scared, scared, huh? Police bout to read the rights. I don't wanna go to jail, man. Might not get no bail, man. Oh, you gangsta, think you tough. Until them rulers pull them cuffs. Okay, now we call your bluff. You just be talking all that stuff. Oh, you a big dog, huh? Cut it out, boy. Not even close. I don't wanna go to jail, man. I'm broke, can't get no bail, man.