Grading the Lakers' 5 free agent signings thus far

Having failed to make the playoffs for 5 consecutive seasons (with most of them coming under former President of Basketball Operations Jim Buss), the Lakers needed a rejig of their roster situation. They began their rebuilding efforts anew late last season, firing Jim Buss and appointing Magic Johnson in his position.

Magic and GM Rob Pelinka made a number of moves in the offseason of 2017, which included trading away Timofey Mozgov's terrible contract while obtaining Brook Lopez's expiring deal from the Brooklyn Nets. They'd already drafted Lonzo Ball with the #2 pick, which mellowed the loss of fellow #2 pick D'Angelo Russell. In addition, they signed a number of veterans to big paydays on one-year contracts with a move to making moves this summer.

The Lakers have made a great start to the offseason, dropping the bombshell of LeBron James' move to LA right on Day 1. Other than him, they've also made some shrewd moves to set up talent alongside him and theoretically can still sign or trade for a max contract free agent. What follows now is a grading of their performance in the offseason thus far, for which we'll consider these 3 parameters:

(a) Talent level of the acquisition

(b) Size of his contract

#1 LeBron James - A+

2018 NBA Finals - Game Four — LeBron at the post-game presser following the 2018 NBA Finals, Game 4

Despite Magic Johnson's best attempts to disguise his intentions through the course of the 2017-18 season, it was obvious to the casual onlooker that the Lakers were going to try and land the biggest fish in the pond, who just happens to be the indomitable King James.

LeBron signed a 4-year,$154 million max deal that puts the Lakers in prime position to take a high seed to the Western Conference Playoffs next year. James put in one of the best statistical seasons for any player in any era last year during the regular season, and he raised the bar several notches during the playoffs, averaging an otherworldly 34 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists.

James will raise their profile off the court as well, as the most marketable star of the league in the planet. All-in-all, there is every reason for Lakers to love this signing, which could go down as one of the most impactful ones in their history.

#2 Lance Stephenson - B+

Cleveland Cavaliers v Indiana Pacers - Game Six

The Lakers also bagged the signature of a journeyman on Day 1, in the form of Lance Stephenson. The Pacers had a $4.3 million team option, which they declined in order to leave Stephenson as a free agent.

The 6'5" 230-pound swingman can be one of the best players in the league when engaged. He is an able playmaker, a role he carried out off the bench for the Pacers last season in a manner that suggests that he's somewhere close to his best right now. Too often, however, Stephenson was inconsistent and constantly got himself into foul trouble, which might be a major reason why he didn't continue his Pacers spell for the 2018-19 season.

Stephenson's major drawback as a player alongside James is the fact that he's not a good 3-point shooter. His career average from downtown is 30.3%, which means that he will not be a major off-ball threat. Otherwise, however, he's a good rotation piece for the comparatively cheap price of $4.5 million.

#3 JaVale McGee - C

The reason the McGee signing receives a C rating has a lot to do with the fact that the Lakers did not lodge any kind of a recruiting pitch for DeMarcus Cousins, who has since gone on to sign with the Warriors for the taxpayer's midlevel exception of $5.3 million.

At his best, McGee can be a force on the boards, a passable rim protector and is comfortable when getting switched out to the perimeter while posing a lob threat on the offensive end. However, the upside with him, currently in line to play for his 11th season in the league, is quite limited in comparison to Boogie.

The Lakers might, in fact, have been better off paying the veteran's minimum to Nerlens Noel, who has demonstrated Capela-like abilities on both ends of the floor in the limited playing time that he's gotten for the Mavericks over the past two seasons.

#4 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope - A

This is probably the best move the Lakers made in order to surround James with 3-and-D specialists, as Caldwell-Pope fits that description quite neatly. While he was overpaid last year as the Lakers attempted to reach the salary floor by signing him for a steep $18 million, they have brought him down to a figure which should match his market price of $12 million for one year.

KCP averaged over 42% from downtown during the months of January, February and March last season, and was also able to assume the role of a primary scorer when needed. He's also an active defender with the athleticism to keep up with the best swingmen in the game, and can guard up to 4 positions on the floor.

Props to Magic for realizing the pressing need for a player in his mould alongside James and tying him up for another year.

#5 Rajon Rondo - C

New Orleans Pelicans v Golden State Warriors - Game Five

This is probably the most inexplicable move made by the Lakers in the first two days of free agency, considering the fact that they already have a player eerily in the prime Rondo mould in terms of Lonzo Ball. Neither can shoot a lick from outside, and both are often willingly left open by defenses at the perimeter and dared to shoot.

More than anything, this is perhaps a signal that the Lakers will now attempt a trade for Kawhi Leonard in order to bolster their squad even further alongside LeBron. Lonzo Ball has, thus far, not been a part of the proposed trade, but the Lakers now look likely to give up both Ingram and Lonzo, who both had promising seasons over the course of the past season.

However, even if Lonzo gets traded, one still fails to understand the rationale of playing a ball-dominant guard alongside LeBron, who's never been asked to sacrifice the ball-hoarding he's done for 15 years in the league. Perhaps he does really wish to move to an off-ball role, after all.

Edited by Kishan Prasad