Darren Collison and the Los Angeles Lakers have more “want them / won’t” energy than most sitcom couples, and it all started as the Veteran Guardian – no NBA game since his abrupt retirement at 31 in 2019 Has played more – was reportedly 50/50 when he retired to join the Lakers in 2020.
But after a roller coaster recruiting saga where Team Collison took to a game like a hyped college prospect, placed him in court with Governor Jeanie Buss and had him tour the locker room and speak to Anthony Davis, Collison eventually decided to retire, later claiming he just wanted to watch a basketball game. We are a relative king.
And since the Lakers won a title anyway, that was considered the end of the dances between the two parties … until that summer when the Lakers held Collison for a training session, before this time seemingly declining it and opting to sign Rondo district.
But Collison was still seen Training with the Lakers with Assistant trainer Phil Handy, and according to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater, it may not just be about staying sharp. Because even though Collison has also trained for the Golden State Warriors, he may still be hoping for a chance with purple and gold (emphasis mine):
But no one could predict from that quick glance whether Collison would be anywhere near the player who averaged 11.2 points and 6.0 assists as the starting point guard on a Pacers team that made it to the 2019 playoffs. If he were, he would be a slam dunk in 15th place. But if he is (or even if he isn’t), would he be willing to accept a non-guaranteed camp invitation as evidence? There are also rumors that he might have an invitation to the Lakers Camp in mind.
With their recent inclusion of Cam Oliver, the Lakers currently have 18 players on their maximum training camp lineup of 20 so they could invite at least two more to camp. They also only have 13 guaranteed contracts, so they still have room for two more players on guaranteed deals (even if they supposedly leave at least one such seat open for the buyout market). But long story short, they could actually get Collison to camp if they wanted to allow him a longer audition to make the list for a guaranteed or unguaranteed deal.
Is that gonna happen? It remains to be seen. Until Collison signs elsewhere, the option will be there, but the Lakers are also clearly exploring all of their options, including drafting another vet who – like Collison – is trying to make a comeback in Kenneth Faried. If the Lakers want backcourt insurance, Collison might not be a bad option, but the team already has a crowded backcourt with ball handlers like Russell Westbrook, Talen Horton-Tucker, Kendrick Nunn and Rondo, not to mention how much LeBron James they will have Ball. Your spots can be better used elsewhere.
However, given her longstanding ties to Collison, as well as Westbrook’s own relationship with him from her two years as a teammate at UCLA, it’s not impossible to imagine the Lakers giving Collison another chance to join the team with a camp invite. As training camp approaches on September 28th, you can expect the front office to continue evaluating its various options for the last two camps before finalizing additions, but between that whisper and simple critical thinking, there are many reasons not to be shocked to be when Collison ends up at least at camp in Los Angeles.
Or maybe he won’t. After all, what distinguishes these two sides is that they get extraordinarily close without ever coming together, so don’t rely on anything until the pen is brought to paper. We’ll find out what happens in the next episode of “As the Lakers spin (the end of their list is over).”
For more Lakers Talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll Podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, stapler or Google podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.
