NBA 2021 free agency: Carmelo Anthony teams up with LeBron James, signs year-long deal with Lakers

Los Angeles Lakers to sign free agent forward Carmelo Anthony on one-year contract, his manager says Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The deal will likely be for the veteran’s minimum, the same amount he’s played in the past two seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers.

The signing represents a career goal for Anthony and his close friend LeBron James. The two played together for Team USA, but never in the NBA. James even told Howard Beck in 2016 that he would take a pay cut to play with Anthony, Dwyane Wade (who remains retired) and Chris Paul (who was out of the Lakers’ price bracket this offseason). James will still be getting his maximum salary this season.

The Lakers made a number of other moves on Tuesday, reportedly agreeing to a deal with free agent goaltender Malik Monk, who will bring the necessary shots to the team. Additionally, Los Angeles added Kendrick Nunn for a two-year contract while Talen Horton-Tucker signed a new contract with the Lakers for a three-year contract worth $ 32 million.

The Lakers entered free agency with just four players on guaranteed contracts, thanks to their successful trade for Russell Westbrook. This created a desperate need for depth, especially among players who can shoot. Anthony, apparently, will fill this void. He shot 40.9% from behind the arc last season, but perhaps more importantly, 41.8% of his shooting attempts came from behind the arc. He left the bench full-time for the first time in his career last season, and offensively he has adapted well to his new role.

Where he’s always struggled is in defense, and those problems persisted last season in Portland. When Anthony was on the court, the Blazers allowed 115.8 points per 100 possessions last season. It was the team’s second worst score behind second-year forward Nassir Little. When he sat down? They improved by allowing only 112.1 points per 100 possessions. This was tied with Damian Lillard for the lowest number among Blazers players when they weren’t in the game. Neither version of the Blazers was good defensively, but they were at their worst with Anthony in the game.

The Lakers have been built around defense since Anthony Davis and Frank Vogel joined the team in 2019. It will be up to them to figure out how to leverage Anthony’s offensive gifts while protecting him on the defensive side of the pitch. If they can do that, they will give Anthony his best shot at winning his first career championship.