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The Los Angeles Lakers brawn, comprised of president Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka, have done everything possible to make the team attractive to Cleveland Cavaliers star forward LeBron James, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski said on Wednesday's episode of The Jump with Rachel Nichols.
“From the day they got the job, they started to do it. That's their job,” said Wojnarowski. “Their job here is to make the Lakers a destination place again for the biggest free agents in the game, and LeBron is going to be the biggest free agent in the game next year.”
Johnson and Pelinka have been aggressive from the get-go, choosing to rid the team of those not in the team's future and go all-in on the promising youth they've boasted for the last few seasons.
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The Lakers also were quick to target those who would be open to a one-year deal, freeing up space for quality free agents like Paul George and James.
“From the moment Detroit renounced Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the moment I reported they renounced him, he was now an unrestricted free agent, the Lakers were already on that.
“This is all part of the greater LeBron conversation, and the Lakers, just like they're in full Paul George mode from now until July 1 next year, for LeBron it's started, and it started the day they took over.”
Johnson and Pelinka comprise the best of both worlds — a renowned Hall of Famer who has got it done during his playing days and is known for his entrepreneurship endeavors, and a likable ex-player-agent who can relate to players in a contract front.
As Wojnarowski's colleague Jalen Rose stated earlier, “the clock is ticking” for James' second exit from Cleveland ,and now the Lakers are one of the frontrunners to land his services with cap space to boot and an interesting core that could give him the ability to compete.
