As LaMarcus Aldridge continues his free agency tour, he’s already ruled out the team that had the first crack at wooing him. The Los Angeles Times’ Mike Bresnahan reports that Aldridge didn’t click with Kobe Bryant during their midnight meeting, and he was unimpressed with the on-court potential of the Lakers’ roster.
LaMarcus Aldridge will not be joining the Lakers, The Times has learned. They were a 50-50 choice but he disliked bball part of presentation
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) July 1, 2015
More LMA: He and Kobe didn't quite gel. It's a little vague, but Aldridge apparently didn't quite get answers from Kobe he was seeking.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) July 1, 2015
Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski adds that the Lakers’ pitch went a little heavy on off-the-court opportunities for Aldridge’s liking:
As @Mike_Bresnahan says, Aldridge felt too much of Lakers presentation focused on outside opportunities; wanted clearer, better b-ball focus
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2015
It’s hard to blame Aldridge if these are his priorities. Portland can offer him more money than anybody else, so the entire reason he would leave in the first place is to go to a team that has a better shot at contending. The Lakers are, well, not that. Not now, anyway. Aldridge has also never been the kind of guy who courts the spotlight or has seemed attracted to a big market for a big market’s sake, so a pitch centered around that aspect of the Lakers wouldn’t be that effective with him. Multiple reports say he’s still going to take the rest of his scheduled meetings before deciding, but the smart money is on San Antonio at this point. They have the money after trading Tiago Splitter, and he will not find a better basketball situation anywhere.