The Los Angeles Lakers are the betting favorites to land Ace Bailey if he forces his way out of Utah.
Online sportsbook Bovada has the Lakers as a +235 favorite, following reports that Bailey is “having second thoughts” about reporting to the Jazz, who selected him at No. 5 despite the controversial rookie declining to attend a pre-draft workout, per NBA insider Jake Fischer, an indication that he doesn’t want to go there.
The Dallas Mavericks (+350), Phoenix Suns (+400), Toronto Raptors (+450) and the Miami Heat (+575) round up the top five teams in the betting list. The Chicago Bulls (+650), Brooklyn Nets (+750) and the Boston Celtics (+850) are also in the mix.
Lakers Want to Get Younger, More Athletic
One of the things that the Lakers needed to address is to “get younger and more athletic on the wings,” team president Rob Pelinka told Spectrum SportsNet after the draft.
Bailey perfectly fits the bill.
The 18-year-old rookie has a 7’0.5″ wingspan. He averaged 17.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.0 block in his one-and-done season for the Scarlett Knights.
However, the Lakers only have one first-round pick (2031 or 2032) to use in any potential trade, though they have up to four pick swaps to sweeten a deal.
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on “Get Up” on Friday morning that the Jazz top brass — Danny Ainge and his son Austin — will not bend to Bailey.
“They will absolutely not budge on this, and eventually, Ace Bailey is going to be a Utah Jazz,” Windhorst said. “We’ll just see how long it takes for him and his representation to figure that out.”
ESPN’s Jonathan Givony reported on Friday afternoon that Bailey is scheduled to report to Utah this weekend with Sunday penciled as his introductory press conference.
Rob Pelinka to Be Aggressive in Trade Market
After the Oklahoma City Thunder became the second-youngest team in NBA history to win a championship, Pelinka wants to copy that blueprint.
Aside from getting younger and more athletic on the wings, the Lakers’ most obvious need is a center.
Pelinka vowed that there will be no stone unturned this offseason to upgrade their roster that flamed out in five games in the first round of the playoffs last season.
“Super active. We’re gonna turn over every stone and whatever resources the collective bargaining agreement gives us, we’re gonna use to the utmost,” Pelinka said. “That’s what we gotta do.
“We have a couple players with player options, so we’ll get those decisions in just a handful of days, and at that point, we’ll know the tools that we have to go out into free agency and fill out the roster. But with the draft ending tonight, the work for that has already begun, but the draft focus will now shift to free agency, and we won’t rest until we get it right.”
Pelinka was referring to LeBron James and Dorian Finney-Smith. James has a $52.6 million player option while Finney-Smith has a $15.4 million player option. If they both opt in, the Lakers will only have the $5.7 million taxpayer midlevel exception.
If they opt out and sign for a less money, the Lakers can have access to the $14.1 million non-taxpayer MLE.
