The Los Angeles Lakers continue to be linked to Raja Bell of the Utah Jazz, even after the trade deadline passed by the Lakers without any roster moves.
Despite the Lakers being unable to move bits and pieces from their bench in Devin Ebanks, Chris Duhon, Darius Morris, or Steve Blake for the low asking price of a second round draft pick, the Lakers remain intrigued with the possibility of signing Bell as a free agent should the Jazz finally resolved their season-long contract dispute, reports Alex Kennedy of HOOPSWORLD.
With the Lakers inability to move one of their bench players for cap flexibility, it's likely the Lakers could target Bell (should he become available) with the disabled player exception they were granted when Jordan Hill was sidelined for the remainder of the season.
Our very own Great Mambino broke down the potential in the acquisition of Raja when the initial report on Wednesday came out:
At age 36, Bell is far past his prime as a 40% three-point shooter and elite defender and now is apparently a problem in the locker room as well. Still, Bell shot 39% from long last season, a quality that's sure to perk up a D'Antoni-led team's ears.
It's unclear if the Jazz are ready to strike a deal with Bell to set him free. They have been resistant to Bell's demands thus far and time is ticking against both parties. For the Jazz, they only have a handful of months left before they simply swallow the salary that hasn't played a single minute this season. For the 36-year-old Bell, he's inching closer to sitting out an entire season. Whether the two sides can find a happy medium and part ways is anybodies guess, but on Thursday Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey said he had "no comment" in regards to Bell's contract situation, via Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune.
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