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Portland's D.A. could go to L.A.
Sources say Anderson is candidate to sign with Lakers.
By Ross Siler
Staff writer
Portland Trail Blazers guard Derek Anderson, a likely casualty of the NBA's luxury-tax amnesty provision, has emerged as a leading free-agent candidate to sign with the Lakers, sources said Tuesday.
Anderson, who is under contract to Portland for two more years and $18.8 million, could be released as early as today. The deadline for a team to take advantage of the provision, part of the league's new collective bargaining agreement, is Aug. 15.
With the NBA's moratorium period ending Tuesday morning, the Lakers also officially acquired Kwame Brown in a sign-and-trade with Washington. Brown, the former No. 1 overall pick in 2001, will return to face the Wizards on Dec. 26.
The Lakers additionally signed guard Smush Parker, who will get the chance to make the team out of training camp, and watched as Shaquille O'Neal agreed to a five-year, $100 million extension with the Miami Heat.
O'Neal opted out of the final year of his contract with Miami, worth more than $30 million. His extension is two years longer than what Lakers owner Jerry Buss said last November he offered O'Neal, at a total value of about $20 million more.
But O'Neal will be making an average of $6.8 million less the next three seasons than he would have by taking the Lakers' offer.
After sending Caron Butler and Chucky Atkins to Washington in exchange for Brown and Laron Profit, the Lakers are left with one point guard on the roster in Sasha Vujacic, their first-round pick in 2004. Atkins started all 82 games at the position last season.
The situation is not desperate, however, with Lamar Odom expected to play more frequently in the backcourt this season. But Anderson, an eight-year veteran, would fit the bill for what the Lakers are seeking
Anderson has the size (6-foot-5, 195 pounds) and ability to play both guard positions, but he has played only 98 games combined the past two seasons while battling back and knee injuries. He averaged 9.2 points and three assists in 47 games for Portland last season.
Anderson and the Lakers are said to have mutual interest. The Lakers still have their $5 million mid-level salary cap exception to spend on a free agent.
The amnesty provision gives teams the one-time opportunity to release a player and avoid paying the dollar-for-dollar luxury tax penalty against his salary. After signing Juan Dixon from Washington, Portland is expected to waive Anderson.
The player would receive his full salary from his former team and be immediately eligible to sign a new contract with another team. The Lakers are considering taking advantage of the provision to waive Brian Grant and save as much as $30 million.
Parker, meanwhile, was signed after a strong showing with the Lakers' summer-league team. He averaged 10.9 points and 4.3 assists and impressed general manager Mitch Kupchak with his ability to run the offense.
He played 66 games for Cleveland as a rookie, then went to Greece before making the Pistons out of training camp last season. After being released by Detroit, Parker played briefly for Phoenix before finishing the year in the NBA's developmental league.
Perhaps most significantly, the Lakers also have maintained their salary-cap flexibility for future summers. They are projected to have the ability to offer a maximum free-agent contract, beginning at about as $14 million per season, in the summer of 2007.
The 2007 free-agent class could include All-Stars from Yao Ming and Amare Stoudemire to Dirk Nowitzki and Vince Carter. Even if they were to bring back Brown, the Lakers still could have some $7.5 million left to spend on free agents.
"One of the things we thought about going forward a year ago was cap flexibility," Kupchak said. "We're very aware of the flexibility we could have at the end of that year (2007) and the year after that."
Also, second-round draft pick Ronny Turiaf was released Tuesday from Stanford University Medical Center, one week after undergoing open-heart surgery. Turiaf will recuperate in Spokane, Wash., where he played college basketball at Gonzaga.
