NBA: Transfer market got busy. Lakers near deal to sign Brandon Bass, may trade Nick Young

The Lakers are not going in the tank again, not in what could well be Kobe Bryant‘s final season.

They struck out on big-name free agents but are now settling in on a smart strategy (maybe one they should have done from the start) of getting quality players to build the kind of roster base that elite free agents look at and think they could win with. They drafted D’Angelo Russell to go with Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson, then they have gotten Lou Williams and Roy Hibbert.

The latest Laker addition recent Celtics big man Brandon Bass, reports Marc Spears of Yahoo Sports. The financial terms of Bass’ deal are not yet finalized. He could get the room exception or they may clear some cap space for him. Bass is the definition of solid NBA big man. He averaged 10.6 points and almost five rebounds a game, shooting 50.5 percent He had a PER of 16.3. He will play hard for them.

For the Lakers to sign Williams and Hibbert is going to take clearing out some cap space, which could mean Nick Young will be on the move. The Lakers have tested the trade market for Young for a while, and it’s a smart move now — with Kobe and Williams and Young, all the Lakers jumpers would be contested.

Shared from probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com