Following the reports that the Lakers have been talking with J.R. Smith on the possibility of joining the roster for the Orlando bubble games, the former Cavs star is said to be inching closer to playing again with LeBron James. This came out as Avery Bradley confirmed last Friday his decision to opt out of the NBA season restart.
With Bradley ruled out for the Orlando games, an opening on the Lakers roster must be filled and the strongest candidate to be tapped by Los Angeles is Smith. This is on the back of the rumors that James has been pushing for his former teammate in the past weeks.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the discussion for Smith to play for the Lakers has started weeks ago and the two parties are in the process of completing an agreement.
Wojnarowski reported: "Smith and the Lakers were working through the final details of a contract on Monday in Los Angeles, and there are believed to be no hurdles to a finalized deal."
If the signing is confirmed, the Lakers will beat the July 1 set by the NBA for all of the 22 teams invited to play in Orlando to replace players that will choose to skip the bubble games. For the most part, Smith will fill up the void created by Bradley's withdrawal.
It's a big question mark how quick Smith will bring his game to Lakers' expectations noting that the 34-year-old last played in the NBA nearly two years ago. The former James teammate is said to be in good shape worked out with Los Angeles before the games were halted in March.
Smith coming in for the Orlando campaign is characterized by Bleacher Report as a luxury move by the Lakers. That's because the Purple & Gold lineup has players with capabilities similar to that of Smith. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Danny Green, and Alex Caruso can very well step up in Bradley's absence and the likelihood is any one of them can outperform Smith.
However, the obvious edge of Smith is he knows how to win the big games and do so with James around. That means Smith's presence on the court could potentially boost James' game. The latter can operate with better space knowing that his former is covering the other important areas.
For instance, the defense collapsing on King James will allow him to spot other openings and it could be Smith, who has a good record knocking down long-range snipes.
Smith will be the familiar support that James will need to perform better on the court but the former delivering on his assigned role will greatly depend on how well and quickly he will shake off the 18 months of inactivity.
