The Lakers signed free-agent guard Avery Bradley to a two-year deal for $9.7 million after he cleared waivers Monday, his agent, Bill Duffy of BDA Sports, told The Times.
Bradley signed with a salary-cap exception and the second year is a player option, Duffy said. The 6-foot-2 veteran joins a Lakers team that now has seven guards not counting LeBron James, who will be the starting point guard next season.
Over the course of his nine-year career, the 28-year-old Bradley has made his mark as an outstanding one-on-one defender. He was named to the NBA’s all-defensive team in 2016 and the second team in 2013 while playing for Boston.
Bradley started 49 games last season with the Clippers, averaging 8.2 points and shooting 33.7% from three-point range, but struggled with injuries. After he was dealt to Memphis at the trade deadline, he averaged 16.1 points in 14 starts and shot 38.4% from three-point range.
He is a career 36.4% three-point shooter.
Bradley joins returning Lakers guards Rajon Rondo, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso and newcomers Danny Green, Troy Daniels and Quinn Cook.
The Lakers now have a 14-man roster, one short of the NBA maximum.
Bradley has 39 playoff games to his credit, averaging 12.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.2 steals in the postseason. He started at guard for the Boston Celtics in their run to the Eastern Conference finals in 2017.
Bradley spent the first 6½ seasons of his career with the Celtics before being traded to the Detroit Pistons during the 2017-18 season. He was traded to the Clippers that same season in a deal highlighted by Blake Griffin's being sent to the Pistons.
Adding shooting was a necessity for the Lakers. Bradley is another acquisition that fits well with LeBron and Anthony Davis, as Pelinka continues to avoid the errors of the 2018 offseason that haunted the Lakers throughout last season.
