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On Saturday, the Los Angeles Lakers made a free agency splash by signing guard Marcus Smart to a contract shortly after his buyout with the Washington Wizards. Smart gives the Lakers the point of attack defender that they desperately needed as well as some veteran leadership and toughness.
In order to bring in Smart, the Lakers will need to make space elsewhere on their roster, and recently, NBA insider Shams Charania of ESPN–who reported the Smart news–broke down the move Los Angeles may be forced to make in order to clear that space.
“The Lakers plan to waive guard Shake Milton to create the roster spot to sign Smart, sources told ESPN. Milton's $3 million contract for next season would have become fully guaranteed Sunday,” reported Charania on ESPN.com.
The Lakers are reportedly still evaluating their options, per ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel, and could end up trying to trade Milton on Sunday, but at this point, waiving seems to be the most likely course of action.
Milton was brought to the Lakers midway through last season when the team traded D'Angelo Russell to the Brooklyn Nets. Milton saw occasional minutes under head coach JJ Redick but never made a huge impact during his time with the Lakers.
Still, he'll likely have suitors now that he is a free agent.
A big move for the Lakers
At this point, it's unclear how JJ Redick plans to utilize Smart in the Lakers' lineup. One option would be to start him alongside Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, giving the Lakers a much-needed perimeter defender in a backcourt that is otherwise the worst defensively in the NBA.
Los Angeles could also opt to bring Smart off the bench to help solidify that unit, which doesn't have a ton of depth at the current juncture.
Whatever direction Redick chooses to go in, the Lakers certainly got better on Saturday, adding a player in Smart who has plenty of playoff experience and has also dramatically improved his perimeter jumper throughout the course of his career.
It will certainly take some getting used to to see Smart, who has spent the majority of his career wearing Boston Celtics green, now in the Purple & Gold.
However, Los Angeles fans have to be excited about the news.
