NBA free agency: Lakers land second meeting with LaMarcus Aldridge

Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge, left, met with the Lakers’ brass when free agency opened Tuesday night. don ryan — the associated press

Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge, left, met with the Lakers’ brass when free agency opened Tuesday night. don ryan — the associated press

The verdict initially seemed dour on whether the Lakers could land a top free agent. But one prospect that apparently ruled them out only a day ago has given the Lakers another chance.

Portland forward LaMarcus Aldridge will meet with the Lakers on Thursday in Los Angeles, according to a league source familiar with the situation. The discussion will center on basketball, a league source said.

Wasserman Media Group had dismissed various reports that said Aldridge had ruled the Lakers out, tweeting out on Wednesday that Aldridge “has not made any decisions yet. All reports to the contrary are false & he looks forward to sharing his plans soon.” But those outlets outlined in detail that Aldridge apparently was not impressed with the Lakers’ basketball presentation.

It is not currently clear who will attend the Lakers’ second meeting with Aldridge. The Lakers brought a full cast to the first meeting, most notably Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, coach Byron Scott, general manager Mitch Kupchak, president Jeanie Buss, executive Jim Buss and Lakers luminary James Worthy. The Lakers’ meeting also included assistant general manager Glenn Carraro, senior vice president of business operations Tim Harris, team publicist John Black as well as representatives with Time Warner Cable SportsNet and AEG.

This could give the Lakers renewed hope to acquire Aldridge, who has also attracted interest from the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks, Toronto Raptors, Phoenix Suns and Portland Trail Blazers. It could also give a jolt to the Lakers’ free agency efforts after striking out on Greg Monroe, who agreed to a three-year, $50 million deal with Milwaukee. The Lakers also could not retain Ed Davis, who agreed to a three-year, $20 million deal with Portland. Meanwhile, the Lakers also met with Clippers center DeAndre Jordan on Wednesday night. Still, Jordan met with Dallas on Tuesday and Wednesday, New York on Thursday morning and plans to see the Clippers on Thursday evening.

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