Lakers working on complicated deal with Jordan Farmar
The Lakers are trying to sign free-agent guard Jordan Farmar, but it’s not as easy as putting pen to paper.
Farmar hopes to sign with his former team for $1.2 million and openly talks about his NBA return after spending last season overseas, but the Lakers must negotiate a buyout of his contract with a pro team in Turkey.
If Farmar returned, the Lakers would have five guards and would no longer pursue another former Lakers player, Sasha Vujacic, who was considered a longshot to make their roster in the first place.
As usual, there are a lot of “ifs†this time of year.
“We are currently working with Jordan to see if we can reach an agreement between him, the Lakers and his team in Turkey,†Lakers spokesman John Black said Wednesday. “Beyond that, we cannot comment further on the situation.â€
Farmar, 26, last played in the NBA during the 2011-12 season, averaging 10.4 points and 3.3 assists with New Jersey.
He signed a lucrative deal to play in Turkey and would need the Lakers to buy out that deal for $500,000.
The Lakers, though, are hoping to negotiate a lower buyout figure to obtain Farmar, who averaged 6.9 points and 2.1 assists over four seasons with them. He left as a free agent after the 2009-10 season.
In an interview Wednesday with The Times, Farmar spoke with hope that a deal would get done.
He was a stubborn, and often cocky, player in his first run with the Lakers but seemed eager to prove himself as a changed person.
“To be able to play with Steve Nash toward the end of his career and learn some things that can help me ... I’m still only 26,†he said Wednesday. “I’m going to soak up as much as I can from him and then to play with Kobe [Bryant], who will be determined to make something happen the last few years of his career, I just felt like that was important for me to learn and move on in the rest of my career.â€
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