The Los Angeles Lakers struck out on signing Paul George but that doesn’t mean they are giving up on making huge improvements to their team. LeBron James still remains their main target but it is also being reported that they have quite a bit of interest in signing DeMarcus Cousins. It sounds like, at least for now, they are more interested in a short team deal rather than committing money long term. LeBron is a big fan of Cousins and signing him could be another way to entice him to be there as well.

There are likely multiple reasons for only wanting to do a short term deal with Cousins. First, he is coming off a season ending Achilles injury and is currently rehabbing, although he does expect to be ready for training camp. Secondly, the team could want to take a wait and see approach and wait until next season ends to discuss more long term options should they sign him this summer.  One of the things to wait and see about could be seeing what happens with Kawhi Leonard next summer if they aren’t able to strike a deal with the Spurs soon.

Marc Spears of ESPN tweeted that Cousins has received calls on Saturday night from both the Pelicans and Lakers and is expected to meet with both teams very soon. Cousins showed he could play well alongside Anthony Davis but it was also pretty clear that Davis played better later in the season and in the playoffs with Cousins sidelined. That could make a possible deal with the Lakers more likely than not. With that said, don’t expect the Pelicans to just throw in the towel on retaining their twin towers of Cousins and Davis.

Written by @IamJoeSports