Breaking: Amare Stoudemire opts out of contract with Lakers

Yesterday was the final day for players to exercise their player options and early termination options and Amare Stoudemire did just that.  Stoudemire has elected to forgo the final year of his contract with the Lakers to become an unrestricted free agent.

General Manager AK was not available for comment but a source with knowledge of the Lakers thinking says "the Lakers are upset he didn't want to stay, but they realize they now have roughly $15-20 million in cap space to play around with in free agency - they will be looking to make a splash."  

The source continued, "They have their eyes on Kenneth Faried, they feel he is the type of player that will fit their philosophy - a high energy guy that rebounds, defends and doesn't command the ball or stop ball movement."  

The source later stated that "the Lakers know they don't have to commit any long term money this off-season, but if the price is right they will.  They know the big fish are available next off-season and that's what they are gunning for.  They have considered going after someone like Pau Gasol or Dirk Nowitzki and offering them very high $$ amount 1 year deals to preserve their vision if necessary."

This news can not be a good thing for the guys in Milwaukee as they may just have to overpay to keep Kenneth Faried or hope that he is loyal to their vision.  The CSL just received another high-roller to their free agency table and things are surely going to get interesting over the next 2 weeks.

This is gonna be very interesting indeed as the Lakers core of Westbrook Horford Beal and the city itself will definitely make for an appealing environment for any player to turn down.

Was shocked to see Amar'e opt out but he did have a very good year so I could see why.

In my opinion, Granger and a one-year PF make a ton of sense here.

PG - Westbrook
SG - Beal
SF - Granger
PF - Gasol
C - Horford

That's a playoff team, my friends.

ESPN710LA has received a statement from AK:

"Yes, Amare opted out. We were blindsided by it. We thank him for his dedication to the team, especially working through his numerous injuries last season. Look, I came in here and cleaned the payroll up drastically while improving the team's future ten fold. We have cap space this offseason which is really a monumental achievement for us given the situation we were handed. I ask all of Lakers Nation to be patient and to remain confident in our organization's ability to restore the brand that so many of you are accustomed to."

Rumors around the office are swirling that the Lakers may have agreed in principle to a trade that will find JJ Reddick in a different uniform while receiving draft considerations and rotational players.

Very interesting to see Amare opt out. Maybe Dallas goes for him? Hah hah.

Crazy to see Amar'e pass up that pay day but now the Lakers are legitimate players in the free agent market.

Rizzo (NO) wrote:Crazy to see Amar'e pass up that pay day but now the Lakers are legitimate players in the free agent market.

Yeah, I was hopeing (a little) this would happen just for the flexibility after nearly losing a 1st because of the cap hell situation I was in. I don't know if I will commit long term money to anyone because of next years possible free agents, but it's good to have the flexibility. Amare's $30 million cap hold can kiss the Lakers' ass lol.

Amare's a really good player and many teams have cap space, so maybe he felt he could get a bigger longterm deal lol.

Good for you he opted out but with 22 wins last season, I think you'll have to do some convincing to be able to spend that cap space on who you want (if you actually want anyone of course).

wow, highly unexpected but could be good for the Lakers. Now you have some cash to chase solid FAs

bt (TOR) wrote:Good for you he opted out but with 22 wins last season, I think you'll have to do some convincing to be able to spend that cap space on who you want (if you actually want anyone of course).

I think with PAs this season, a human will be able to look at the Lakers and see that a better roster is already put into place. I wouldn't say they are championship caliber but they certainly aren't looking at another top-7 pick. Playoffs are in definite reach for this team if they spend wisely during free agency.

LA will be a playoff Team. Houston was able to
make a run with Harden and Iggy, Charlotte did it with MKG and Kobe, so why shouldnt LA be a big player during FA? Horford/beal/westbrook looks way better compared to MKG/Tyreke, in my opinion. Same for minny, Love/McLemore/Lin/Parsons looks damn strong.

Might be better to sign 1 year contracts and preserve max cap for next years draft class as per your plan. Hopefully Beal takes that next step this season and Westbrook has an injury free season because if you make the playoffs it will make the Lakers that much more attractive to FA. Goodluck