On Wednesday, Taurean Prince seemingly learned that he was entering unrestricted free agency by reading a tweet from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The veteran forward had a $7.4 million non-guaranteed contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves and, when the team chose to pass on that guarantee, Prince faced the chance to pick his next destination. In a hurry, Prince reportedly elected to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers when free agency officially opened on Friday night.
First, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported the partnership between Prince and the Lakers, with Wojnarowski later noting that the deal will be for one year and $4.5 million. In addition, Bobby Marks of ESPN notes the deal will fit into the bi-annual exception.
Free agent forward Taurean Prince is finalizing a deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 30, 2023
Free agent F Taurean Prince has agreed to a 1-year, $4.5 million deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, his agents Steven Heumann and Richie Beda of @CAA_Basketball tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 30, 2023
Prince, who is now 29 years old, was a lottery pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, and he has appeared for the Wolves, Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, and Cleveland Cavaliers in his seven-year career. He provides the Lakers with another option at either forward spot, and Prince is a proven three-point marksman. In 424 games and nearly 1,900 career attempts, Prince has connected on 37.2 percent of long-range offerings, including 38.1 percent this season in Minnesota.
With Prince now flanking LeBron James and Anthony Davis on a team pursuing a title in the near term, Prince will compete for playing time and look to provide positive contributions that could boost his market value for next summer.