The first 24 hours of 2018 free agency have been epic. After a large flurry of reported agreements late Saturday night as the negotiation period kicked off, Sunday evening multiple outlets reported that LeBron James has decided to sign with the Lakers. Here’s the LA Times with more:
After securing a commitment from LeBron James on a four-year deal worth $154 million, the Lakers agreed Sunday to one-year deals with three veterans.
They will pay Kentavious Caldwell-Pope $12 million, Lance Stephenson $4.4 million and JaVale McGee $2.4 million, according to people familiar with the agreements who were not authorized to speak publicly. None of the deals can become official until Friday when the league’s moratorium on signing contracts lifts.
Two contracts did become official. The Lakers signed first-round draft pick Moe Wagner, which means he cannot be traded for at least 30 days. They also signed Malik Newman, a rookie out of Kansas, to a two-way contract.
Caldwell-Pope spent last season with the Lakers on a one-year deal worth $18 million, after spending the first four years of his career with the Detroit Pistons. He hit the market late because the Pistons waited until mid-July to renounce their rights to him after they were unable to reach an agreement on a new contract.
