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SALT LAKE CITY - The on-again, off-again buyout talks between the Jazz and Raja Bell have started to gain some form of traction in the form of interest from other teams.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports has reported that the Lakers, with their new head coach Mike D'Antoni, once again have interest in the 36-year-old Bell. He played under D'Antoni while they were in Phoenix.
Bell is still sucking money from the Jazz while being asked not to join in any team activity. His buyout seemed imminent in early July, but since then Bell has backed out of the deal. The Jazz have 15 players on roster, so Bell's slot could be used down the line to pick up a mid-season free agent.
The addition of Bell could add depth to the Lakers with his shooting and defense. He was the best 3-point shooter on the Jazz last season, shooting 39 percent. He was also a feisty defender while healthy last year.
Kobe Bryant, whose relationship included a playoff clothesline, wanted Bell before he signed with the Jazz and has pushed for him again this season. The biggest problem according to Wojnarowski is the money for the Lakers.
"With a $100 million payroll and $30 million in additional luxury-tax expenditures, the Lakers are unsure about cutting a player, paying his salary and then paying the additional salary ($1.3 million) and tax that it would take to sign Bell," according to Wojnarowski.
He also says that the Bulls have also shown some interest in Bell who would add to a complement of strong defensive-minded players.
Neither team has made any offers or even started making moves for Bell, but the interest has started back up.
