Can someone explain the rationale behind signing Deng and Mozgov in the first place?

fusuyballer · Starting Rotation Joined: 27 Feb 2008 Posts: 513

Here's my best explanation and I will acknowledge that some of this is speculation because I am not completely sure. I also want to acknowledge that I skimmed over every comment in this section and I didn't see anyone point this out. (unless I missed it)

I am of the belief that we signed Moz and Deng to the contracts that we did because it was a strategic cap related signing that served multiple purposes......Here's the part I am not totally sure about and my theory will rest on this next sentence. If I am correct, every NBA must spend a certain amount of money per CBA guidelines...

So, based on that above (I believe) that Mitch and Joe signed those 2 to strategic contracts to satisfy cap guidelines while also bringing in two veteran players that would not put up a big fuss about playing time. I actually believe when you really look at it, they were wise signings.

If you have a young developing team, (with multiple players who need playing time at SF, PF, and so on) and you have to spend X amount of money per NBA guidelines, do you sign a really talented player who will resist sitting on the bench and create chemistry issues when said player demands playing time over your younger developing players?

I believe the logic behind the signing were to satisfy cap obligations while strategically signing two guys who would not fuss while getting relatively little playing time while the younger players developed...Plus, the front office knew that both of these guys would also be tradable contracts in the event a big name player was available...and even if we had to eat the contracts ...their expiration dates (18-19) are right around the time we have to start making decisions on the young core...signing them to long term deals or shipping them out. If you look at the recent trade of Russell + Moz -- we traded Russell right before his team option in 2018...and Moz has 3 years left but he's still a serviceable player for his size and age. And Brooklyn doesn't mind because they expect their accession to take longer than 3 years...(in 2 years, Moz contract will be even more tradable as an expiring asset)

Long story short, I think there's a lot of logic and rationale behind what Jimmy and Mitch decided to do...and in a way it will benefit the Lakers in the long term...and I know it doesn't seem like we got anything for Russell, but ultimately rather we got rid of Russell for Paul George directly or indirectly, the in goal is to have space available in '18 to '19 to be able to do just that...this just happened a year earlier than we thought.

Personally, I like it... all the distractions are starting to disappear. Lonzo Ball is a serious dude about basketball. He's not immature and he does not mess around on the court. Whether he plans out or not (as a star) is another thing, but I like the fact that he comes to LA with most of the baggage gone...because its time this team gets serious about bball again.

mad55557777 · Franchise Player Joined: 29 Jun 2005 Posts: 23478

i just hate the length of the deals, they could give them a bigger deal on a shorter year.

composite · Star Player Joined: 31 May 2005 Posts: 3043

greenfrog · Posted: Thu Jun 22, 2017 2:00 pm Post subject:

kevin61 · Star Player Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 1332

The reason for these signings will forever be a mystery. They never made sense. They were too long, too high and for the wrong players. I didn't think Mitch was to blame for the Lakers predicament, but he made things so much worse.

lakersfever714 · Franchise Player Joined: 05 Jan 2016 Posts: 11891

The people responsible for these trades have paid a dear price already. What happened was already in the past. There's no need to beat a dead horse. Why even waste forum space discussing the matter further?
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venturalakersfan · Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2017 10:46 am Post subject:

kevin61 · Star Player Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 1332

RI Laker · Star Player Joined: 27 Jun 2005 Posts: 7165

Two of the worst signings in recent NBA history. They did provide leadership and one can not put a price on that.

KindCrippler2000 · Franchise Player Joined: 02 May 2003 Posts: 15821

A few reasons -

1) I assume they wanted to make a push for that 8th spot, although it was a fool's errand from the beginning. They believed Deng and Mozgov would bolster their playoff hopes. Unfortunately, the Deng of right now is not even close to the Deng of 3 years ago. There's so much wear and tear on that body that his decline at 32 years of age should have been anticipated. Lebron is probably the only one impervious to father time, but he's one of those rare genetic monsters.

I liked the Mozgov signing at first, but I believe our medical staff downplayed his past knee injury. I think they mistakenly assumed he recovered from that botched knee surgery, when it was just the opposite to me. Mozgov did not even play close to the level of defense he played during the 2015 season. There was a clear decline in his lateral movement, rim protection ability. His lift was practically non-existent at times, and I recall Russell blocking one of his shots in training camp.

2) They had to pay someone or that money would have been split between the players (based on total salary). I don't think the Lakers were willing to do that, although in retrospect, that would have been one of the wiser moves.

kevin61 · Star Player Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 1332

They could have picked up expiring deals as a service to other clubs. As we saw with Mosgov to BRK, that can be quite a lucrative strategy. Instead they committed long term to aging and average players. Anyone that didn't see that from the beginning was wearing dark rose colored glasses. It was a move worthy of dismal for both participants.

Jiggling Jello · Sixth Man Joined: 22 May 2017 Posts: 87

Drifts · Retired Number Joined: 22 Nov 2004 Posts: 28405

the rationale was that Mitch and Jim wanted to get fired, so after signing Roy Hibbert the previous year, they decided to solidify their fate out the door by signing 2 more useless players.
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deal · Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2017 3:50 pm Post subject:

No rational needed. Just a major screwup.
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Alexisonfire26 · Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2017 5:02 pm Post subject:

Most of LG was having a meltdown when we signed Mozgov as free agency opened to that contract (myself included). In the end we were all right to overreact because it cost us a young talented player to dump the contract. In some instances fan reactions arent always wrong. This is a example of FO doesnt always know best and got desperate. Deng was also surprising but it wasnt for the money, it was for the years he got. These deals sealed Mitch and Jims fate and now Rob and Magic are trying to clean it up.
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