As the Los Angeles Lakers continue to make big moves, a couple of acquisitions flew under the radar. The team traded away JaVale McGee and a second-round pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers in order to create room under the hard cap to sign Marc Gasol. In doing so, they also received back two players on Alfonzo McKinnie and Jordan Bell.
Both players had non-guaranteed contracts but the Lakers had to partially guarantee them in order to make the trade legal. Based on the cap situation, we seem to already know that McKinnie will be staying on board with the team while Bell will be waived and his contract will be stretched.
Explanation via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin and Bobby Marks:
The Lakers will guarantee $580,000 of Bell’s salary, waive him and use the stretch provision to space the money owed to him over the next three years, league sources told Marks.
McKinnie’s contract has been fully guaranteed, and he will begin the season on the Lakers’ roster, according to Marks.
McKinnie is entering his fourth season in the NBA following stops in Toronto and Golden State as well as Cleveland. The 28-year-old has career averages of 4.3 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.
It’s unlikely that Alfonzo McKinnie will play a major role for the Lakers this season but at the very least, he gives the Lakers another depth piece on the wings and a player that development coach Phil Handy will try to turn into a positive contributor.
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