10 HRS AGO - Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images The Lakers came up short against Miami in their first summer league game in nearly two years. The Summer League Lakers made their return after a nearly two-year layoff on Tuesday, facing off against the Miami Heat in the opening game of the California Classic hosted by the Sacramento Kings. Though the Lakers had four players score in double digits, led by 15 points from summer league and South Bay Lakers veteran Devontae Cacok, they still came up short as Heat rookie Ömer Yurtseven’s 27 points carried Miami to an 80-78 victory. The game definitely felt like a return to summer league, both in the fact that it was largely overshadowed by the Lakers’ flurry of free agency moves to some production issues that left the ESPN2 game broadcast without a functioning audio feed for a solid chunk of the first half. Despite the long layoff, Cacok still looked like someone who had been in summer league before, not just leading the Lakers scoring, Collapse

13 HRS AGO - Third time’s a charm? Most likely that will be the scenario for center Dwight Howard, who the Los Angeles Lakers re-signed yesterday to make his third appearance in the purple and gold. Of course, we can say that Howard made it two times a charm as he was part of the world champion Lakers team […] Los Angeles Lakers: Why re-signing Dwight Howard was so smart - Lake Show Life - Lake Show Life - Los Angeles Lakers News and Fan Community Collapse

15 HRS AGO - Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images Kendrick Nunn is the latest young guard to take a prove it deal with the Lakers in free agency. The Los Angeles Lakers have used their taxpayer mid-level exception on another young guard, landing Kendrick Nunn from the Miami Heat on a two-year, $10 million deal, per Shams Charania of The Athletic. Kendrick Nunn has agreed to a two-year, $10M deal with the Lakers, his agent Adam Pensack tells @TheAthletic @Stadium.— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 3, 2021 Nunn reportedly turned down “significantly” more money to sign with the Lakers and chase a title, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Free agent guard Kendrick Nunn has agreed to a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, source tells ESPN. Deal includes a player option. Nunn turned down significantly more money to chase a title with the Lakers.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 3, 2021 Nunn averaged 14.6 points and 3.2 rebounds per game while shooting 38.1% from Collapse

17 HRS AGO - Graphic via Zain Fahimullah / Silver Screen and Roll As expected, it’s finally time for Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James to team up. The Lakers have signed the veteran scorer to bolster their new Big 3 in free agency. Carmelo Anthony was reportedly just waiting on the Lakers to call him before committing to join them in free agency, and on Tuesday, that call came. Anthony has officially agreed to head to Los Angeles when players can start signing contracts on Aug. 6. Free agent F Carmelo Anthony has agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, his manager Bay Frazier tells ESPN.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 3, 2021 pic.twitter.com/vqto96ktrM— Carmelo Anthony (@carmeloanthony) August 3, 2021 Given how limited the Lakers’ means were to add players in free agency after trading for a third max contract in Russell Westbrook, getting a scoring threat like Anthony on a discount is a solid move. Anthony is far from the player he was in his prime — that’s Collapse

19 HRS AGO - Photo by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images The Lakers’ big 2021 midseason buyout addition didn’t exactly pan out, and now Drummond will leave Los Angeles for a fresh start with the Sixers. When Andre Drummond signed with the Los Angeles Lakers after being bought out by the Cleveland Cavaliers in March, fans hoped he would provide a spark to a team thrown wildly off course by injuries to Anthony Davis and LeBron James, and reinforcements for them on the glass when they returned. Drummond was a decent role player, but did not come close to filling the massive void left by the Lakers’ two superstars, though that was probably an impossible task to begin with. Still, pretty much everything that has transpired on both his and the Lakers’ ends since the season came to close only seemingly served to rule out the possibility of a long-term future with the team. Drummond has now officially departed for the Sixers, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN: Free agent C Andre Collapse

22 HRS AGO - Thus far, the Los Angeles Lakers free agency activity has involved the team bringing back old friends. The Lakers re-signed Dwight Howard for his third stint with the team, signed Trevor Ariza for his second stint with the team, signed Kent Bazemore for his second stint in LA and has signed Wayne Ellington for his […] Lakers free agency grades: Bringing back Wayne Ellington - Lake Show Life - Lake Show Life - Los Angeles Lakers News and Fan Community Collapse

1 DAY AGO - Photo by Keith Birmingham/MediaNews Group/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images Alex Caruso wanted to stay with the Lakers, all things being equal. The team instead let him walk to the Bulls in free agency. The Los Angeles Lakers didn’t quite discover Alex Caruso. That honor went to the Oklahoma City Blue, the G League team who signed him to his first professional contract as an undrafted free agent, and where he played his first season as a pro. But to call Caruso one of the brightest diamond’s in the rough the scouting department has ever unearthed still isn’t an understatement. Caruso was the first two-way player the Lakers signed, inking him to their first contract of that type after a couple of strong showings in Las Vegas Summer League. And after a few impressive games down the stretch of the regular season during his two seasons as a two-way player, the team signed him to the first guaranteed NBA contract of his career. By the end of his first season as a full-time NBA Collapse

1 DAY AGO - Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images After four seasons with the team, Alex Caruso is departing the Lakers in free agency. He is reportedly set to sign with the Bulls. Alex Caruso will not return to the Los Angeles Lakers next season, as he’s agreed to a four-year, $37 million contract with the Chicago Bulls, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. As an unrestricted free agent, Caruso had the freedom to entertain offers from other teams, but there were plenty of reasons to be optimistic that he’d return to Los Angeles. For starters, his skillset is maximized by playing alongside a star point forward like LeBron James and under a defensive-minded coach like Frank Vogel. In terms of fit, the Lakers were the best fit. Additionally, the Lakers had his full bird rights, meaning they could go over the cap to re-sign him to a contract worth up to the max. Obviously they were never going to give Caruso the max, but they could have if they wanted to, and not many other teams Collapse

1 DAY AGO - Photo by Harry How/Getty Images The Lakers are bringing Trevor Ariza back to the team he won a title with in 2009, and Wayne Ellington is returning to play for the team for a second time as well. 12 years after he helped the Lakers raise a banner before leaving in free agency, Trevor Ariza is coming home to Los Angeles to try and help the team raise another one. He will be joined by fellow veteran shooter Wayne Ellington, who previously played for the team during the 2014-15 season. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN and Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports broke the news about the Lakers’ first two deals of free agency: Free agent F Trevor Ariza has agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, his agents Aaron Mintz, Steven Heumann and Erika Ruiz of @caa_sports tell ESPN.— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 2, 2021 Free agent guard Wayne Ellington Jr. has reached an agreement with the Los Angeles Lakers on a one-year deal, his agent Mark Bartelstein of @PrioritySports Collapse