The last time a meeting with a free agent felt so critical to the Lakers’ future, the franchise’s incumbent superstar ignored his bosses’ request that he dress for the boardroom and rolled in wearing a can’t-be-bothered ensemble of gym shorts, a T-shirt and gold chain. Kobe Bryant then proceeded to make it perfectly clear to Dwight Howard whose team it was, whose team it would be and just how far the big man would have to go before the team could ever be his.
Howard bolted.
Six losing years later, the Lakers have an opportunity to lock in an even greater “big three” than the one they thought they had in Bryant, Howard and Steve Nash. LeBron James and Anthony Davis are in place, and both men are expected to play an active role in coaxing a commitment from Kawhi Leonard when free agency begins on Sunday.
If James gets the chance to sit in front of Leonard, Sam Amick of The Athletic reports that LeBron will take a decidedly different approach than…
