Lakers Are Signing Markieff Morris
The Lakers are signing Markieff Morris, it would appear. The veteran forward and the Detroit Pistons have agreed to a buyout.
That means Markieff Morris is now free to sign with whomever he wants, and Los Angeles appears to be an early favorite.
Detroit is in official rebuild mode at this stage, as evidenced by the organization trading center Andre Drummond for peanuts before the NBA trade deadline.
The Los Angeles Lakers have emerged as a frontrunner to sign Markieff Morris, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Toronto has also expressed interest in Morris.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 21, 2020
Now, with Blake Griffin out, there is really no reason for them to even try to compete. As such, it should come as no surprise that the team was able to reach out a buyout agreement with Morris.
Marcus Morris and the Knicks have everyone’s attention, but the Pistons have also received calls from multiple contenders for his brother, Markieff Morris.
The Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Sixers, and Celtics are among those teams interested in Markieff Morris, per league sources.
— Kevin O’Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) February 5, 2020
According to The Athletic NBA insider Shams Charania, the Lakers are an early favorite to come away with the Morris twin that they were not pursuing prior to the trade deadline.
The New York Knicks and Lakers were in discussions for Marcus Morris prior to the trade deadline, but ultimately could not come to an agreement on a fair package. As a result, the Knicks sent him to the Clippers instead.
Markieff is not having as strong of a season as his brother, but he is still a dependable veteran that could be a valuable contributor on a championship team.
So far this year Morris is averaging 11 points and 3.9 rebounds in just over 22 minutes per outing. He is doing it while also shooting a career-best 39.7 percent from behind the arc.
Beyond the Lakers, the Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics have all also expressed some interest in acquiring Morris.
A final decision on where he will ultimately end up should come at some point in the next several days.
The Lakers are currently 41-12 through 53 games – good for first place in the Western Conference. They have been trying hard to upgrade the roster for several months now, but limited assets have reduced their ability to get anything done.
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A graduate from the University of Texas, Anthony Amador has been credentialed to cover the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and high school games all over the Lone Star State. Currently, his primary beats are the NBA, MLB, NFL and UFC.
