Ranking The Top 3 Warriors Free Agents For LA This Summer

With your Los Angeles Lakers heading to the Chase Center to face off against the Golden State Warriors, we here at All Lakers are looking towards the future a bit.

Yes, LeBron James has a $51.4 million player option this summer and could be departing for greener pastures but, for the purposes of this exercise, let's assume he picks up the option and sticks around LA for at least one more year.

Let's look at three of the Warriors' (probable) free agents this summer, and how they could align with the Lakers. We'll be assessing this triumvirate of contributors relative to (a) their overall playing ability and (b) their projected usefulness to the Purple and Gold next year.

1. Klay Thompson

The 6'6" swingman out of Washington State will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. After being shelved in several recent late-game situations, one wonders if the LA native (and son of current Lakers radio broadcast commentator Mychal Thompson) would like to venture elsewhere. Although he's no longer an All-Defensive perimeter wing, he remains, most importantly, a lethal sharpshooter (he's making 37.3% of his 8.7 triple tries) at a key position of need along the wing.

2. Chris Paul

CP3 is slated to earn a non-guaranteed $30 million next season. The 38-year-old future Hall of Famer has moved on to a bench role with his latest squad, but remains a staunch defender, solid three-point shooter and, perhaps most critically for this year, one of the league's elite distributors. As an undersized player at the smallest position in the game, Paul has always been somewhat brittle. Given that and his age, he seems a bit riskier a proposition than Thompson.

3. Kevon Looney

Looney is owed a partially guaranteed $8 million deal for next season, but he's firmly ensconced as his current club's starting center -- albeit at a discount. Would the solid defender and rim roller actually be amenable to playing as (most likely) a backup behind All-Star starting Los Angeles center Anthony Davis, when the 6'9" big man is good enough to start in other circumstances? Looney is a bit undersized for his position, which also happens to be one of the more replaceable gigs in the league. His youth and (recent) durability make him an intriguing possibility, but he may price himself out of usefulness for the Lakers, and LA's need for three-point shooting makes Paul and Thompson a bit more uniquely placed to gel with the club's current personnel.