On June 30, Beijing time, Lakers reporter Brad Turner broke the news that Klay was interested in playing with the Lakers and James and planned to negotiate with the Lakers Mavericks. Previously, Shams and Anthony Slater reported that the Lakers, Clippers and Mavericks are expected to be strong suitors for Klay.
So, you know, Klay is still very popular in the free market, especially for teams that need room to improve their team.
Last season, the Lakers were eliminated by the Nuggets in the first round, mainly because of the lack of offensive firepower on the outside, and they could not match the opponent's offense in the second half of the game. The Clippers are at risk of losing George, so they still want to bring in Klay in order to improve their offensive level from the outside. And the same is true for the Mavericks, who lost to Kyle in the Finals, mainly because role players such as Jones Jr. couldn't shoot those open three-pointers, and it would be better to replace them with Klay.
Shams also revealed that James intends to give up the $51.4 million player option for next season, and his agent Rich Paul also reported that James has officially opted to jump out of his contract with the Lakers, prioritizing roster improvements, and hopes that management will bring in influential players.
ESPN's Dave McMenamin reports that James is willing to take a pay cut for the possible arrival of Harden, Klay or Wallan. However, once the recruitment fails, James will not choose to take a salary cut, but continue to ask for a contract with a maximum salary.
In this way, you can probably understand that James, who is about to turn 40, is still eager to win the championship, so he can choose to compromise on personal income. But the premise is that the team has to bring in a strong helper, and his personal financial sacrifice is worth it. Rich Paul also said that James may choose to take a pay cut to sign with the Lakers, helping the Lakers release a $12.9 million full mid-range exception.
Salary expert Smith explained that to help the team get the full mid-range exception, James would need to take a pay cut of about $16 million.
In this way, if the Lakers want to get Harden, it is tantamount to a dream, after all, the Clippers can offer more than twice the salary offered by the Lakers; The middle-class exception is not enough to sign Clay, and the Mavericks may give Klay more treatment; Therefore, the probability of center Valan joining the Lakers will be greater, what do you think?