Free agent guard J.R. Smith is expected to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers for the rest of the season, according to Marc Stein of the New York Times.
The Lakers, league sources say, are expected to finalize a rest-of-the-season contract with J.R. Smith before Tuesday's 11:59 PM ET closure of the NBA's "transaction window"
Rosters for the NBA restart at Walt Disney World must be turned in to the league office Wednesday
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 29, 2020
Smith started talking about a deal with the Lakers after Avery Bradley opted out of the NBA restart last week. The two sides are going through the final details of the deal and don’t expect there to be any hurdles during the process, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
In Februarym Smith worked out with the Lakers, so it’s no surprise that they wanted him. However, he hasn’t played a game in the NBA since November 2018 with the Cleveland Cavaliers, who waived him last summer.
Smith will be reunited with LeBron James in Los Angeles. While playing with James in Cleveland, Smith made it to four NBA Finals and won a championship.
Signing Smith is a good move for the Lakers as they now have a very legitimate shot at winning a championship this season.
