Lakers GM: No Signings Any Time Soon


After a sub-par offseason left the Lakers’ roster looking like it would need an extra piece or two for the team to have any chance of competing, Kobe and Co. have put an end to that idea, winning nine of their first 13 behind a monster start from KB. So it should come as no surprise that Mitch Kupchak told ESPNLosAngeles he won’t be wheeling and dealing, at least for the time being: “It has been a month since Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak told reporters the team was still ‘pursuing big deals’ in the aftermath of the vetoed Chris Paul trade that resulted in Lamar Odom ultimately being shipped to Dallas as a consequence. Things have died down since then. ‘We’re in a different time frame right now,’ Kupchak told ESPNLosAngeles.com before the Lakers hosted the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday. ‘You’re talking about a period of time when there was free agency and everybody was scrambling to put together their rosters and sign players and deal with the issues that were out there. We’re into the season now, so generally speaking, when you’re into the season things slow down and people typically want to see how their team looks. So, without being specific, that’s where we are.’ The Lakers have a full 15-man roster at the moment and would need to release a player to add one of the veteran free agents on the market. Accomplished NBA contributors Gilbert Arenas and Joel Przybilla are still without a team and Yahoo! Sports reported Rasheed Wallace is considering coming out of retirement to sign somewhere. ‘We don’t expect to sign anybody any time soon,’ Kupchak said.