Makaveli the Don(cic)

Free agent forward Ziaire Williams has agreed on a one-year, $3 million deal to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers, sources tell ESPN.

This means the Lakers will operate above the cap to acquire a starting-level forward/wing (if they so choose). Here are the salary-matching rules they'll be dealing with: -- Up to $8.8M in outgoing salary can bring back 200% plus $250K (e.g., Jaden Hardy for a player making up to $12.25M) -- $8,800,001 to $29M will be padded by a flat $9,096,000 (e.g., Jarred Vanderbilt for a player making up to ~$21.5M) -- Above $29M will be limited to 125% plus $250K (unlikely LA is able to combine this much salary)

Free agent guard Gary Trent Jr. has agreed to a four-year, $64 million deal to stay with the Milwaukee Bucks, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul and agent Lucas Newton tells ESPN.

BLOCKBUSTER: The Boston Celtics have agreed to trade Jaylen Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers for Paul George, two first-round picks and two second-round picks, sources tell ESPN.

Free agent Bogdan Bogdanovic has agreed to a one-year deal with the Houston Rockets, sources tell ESPN. Rockets executives recruited Bogdanovic tonight and now land an established, playoff-tested shooter for his 10th NBA season.

Free agent sharpshooter Luke Kennard has agreed to a two-year, $13 million deal with the Phoenix Suns, with a player option for the second season, sources tell ESPN.

The Lakers never deserved LeBron James. Some of us remember the summer of 2018. When LeBron James, the best player in the world, chose to sign with a franchise that was the laughing stock of the league. They hadn’t sniffed the playoffs in five years. And they welcomed the best player in the world by surrounding him with the infant versions of Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma and Brandon Ingram as his teammates. He helped bring in Anthony Davis. The same Anthony Davis that helped bring in Luka Doncic. They won the Cup. They won a championship. Their first title in a decade. Over the course of the next eight seasons, we watched as Lakers fans blamed LeBron for everything when their season fell short even though he was playing at an All-NBA level. His loyalty was questioned, even though he fulfilled every contract to the end. We saw the front office sit on their hands with draft capital. We saw the front office prioritize future cap space instead of rolling the dice every year. We saw them waste prime years with AD. Now, we see Lakers fan celebrating as he walks out the door after bringing the franchise back to relevancy. He was never appreciated as much as he should have been.