National Basketball Association

Lakers make contract decisions on their young core ahead of season opener

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:51 p.m. ET

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Nunzio Ingrassia

Hours before their regular-season opener against the Rockets on Wednesday, the Los Angeles Lakers picked up team options for their young trio of Larry Nance Jr., Julius Randle and D’Angelo Russell for the 2017-18 season.

The Lakers are looking to build around their nucleus of young players in the hopes of ending their three-year playoff drought.

Russell has shown promising signs in the summer league and the preseason, with many expecting him to make huge strides this season. He averaged 13.2 points and 3.3 assists last season, struggling to find consistent playing time under former coach Byron Scott.

Randle played his first full season last year after suffering a season-ending injury in 2014. Though he started only 60 of 82 games last season, he made the most of his time on the floor, averaging 11.3 points and 10.2 rebounds in 28.2 minutes a game.

Nance mainly came off the bench last season, providing energy and hustle. He averaged 5.5 points and 5.0 rebounds as a rookie.

With former Warriors coach Luke Walton now coaching the Lakers, these three players should see an uptick in their output playing in an up-tempo offense. Couple them with rookie Brandon Ingram and third-year guard Jordan Clarkson, and the Lakers could finally be heading in the right direction.

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