Trade & FA 2023-24: Stein-Ingram Trade Inevitable| LAL Want Lebron Back On Any Terms

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I have a suggestion for a player I think would fit well here and fits our price range-  Derrick Jones Jr. 

He is a very good defensive player and would be an immediate, substantial defensive upgrade over Reggie Bullock.  He is an elite athlete who is a better rebounder than Bullock. He also provides some rim protection (1.5 blocks per 36 minutes).  He runs the court well and is strong in transition-  I believe he'd fit especially well with the Kyrie-only minutes when we will push the pace better.  He is not a great 3-point shooter-  33.8 percent last season.  However, he has improved from 3 four consecutive seasons.  I also believe he would see better looks with Luka and Kyrie running the offense compared to playing with DeRozan and Zach Lavine.  

He is only 26 years old and still potentially has some room for improvement-  especially as a shooter.  

He turned down his player option for $3.36 million.  I suspect we could acquire him for somewhere around 3 years, $18-20 million total.  I believe that would be fair value for a good role player.  I think he'd be a solid rotation player as a small-ball 4.  

I really like the idea of Bruce Brown here but I think he will receive bigger offers than we can provide.

I think Derrick Jones Jr. would be an upgrade over Bullock, add some needed athleticism and defense and not require our full MLE.

As president of the DJJ fan club, I'd like to take a bow.

I never imagined he'd start here but the fit on this roster seems really good.

I do wish we signed him to a multi-year deal at more than the vet minimum.  I hope we can re-sign him this coming summer.