The Lakers could be exactly the kind of team that benefits if Cameron Johnson ends up on the move.
Johnson, now with the Denver Nuggets after coming over from the Brooklyn Nets in the Michael Porter Jr. deal, has built a reputation that may be a little bigger than his actual offensive role. He’s the kind of player who can light it up on a lottery team and make people wonder if there’s another level there. But the source here makes the case that he’s not really an All-Star type - and that’s fine, because that’s not the job he was brought in to do.
What Johnson did in Denver was simple and valuable. As Joe Cervenka put it, “Johnson did exactly what he was brought to Denver to do, operating as a lethal, hyper-efficient spatial engine while sniping a blistering 43.0% from beyond the arc.
Contenders are perpetually starved for high-IQ, plug-and-play wing depth, making him an incredibly attractive asset on the open market. But here is the catch: with the Nuggets facing an absolute salary-cap crunch under the league's uncompromising second-apron rules, keeping Johnson’s salary on the ledger might be a luxury they can no longer afford.
Flipping him for multiple cost-controlled depth assets is a classic, savvy move to rebalance a top-heavy roster matrix,” Joe Cervenka wrote.
That’s where the Lakers come in. A $95 million 3-and-D wing like Johnson fits the kind of player Los Angeles should be chasing, especially if the goal is to add the sort of reliable wing help Luka Doncic needs.
The problem is that the path to a deal doesn’t look clean. Los Angeles simply doesn’t have a lot of assets to work with, which means Denver wouldn’t be looking at a massive haul if it decided to move Johnson’s contract.
Even so, the fit is obvious enough that the idea makes sense for the Lakers. If Denver chooses to cash him out, Los Angeles should be paying attention.
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Instead, he was nowhere to be found in the first game, which naturally left Lakers fans wondering what kind of role, if any, he is actually being given in Vegas. Elmore is already 30, and while his path has included real production and plenty of experience, his playing time and his chances of turning this Summer League look into something more with the Lakers remain very much up in the air. [Read more 🡒]