Lakers sign Blake Hinson, Armel Traore to two-way deals ahead of summer league
On the eve of the Lakers’ start to summer league play, the franchise officially signed two players who were already featured on their summer league roster to two-way contracts.
The Lakers announced on Friday that they signed forwards Blake Hinson and Armel Traore to two-way deals.
Michael Scotto of USA TODAY Sports’ Hoops Hype reported that Hinson’s contract is for two years.
The 6-foot-8, 230-pound Hinson averaged 18.5 points (42.1% from 3-point range) and 4.4 rebounds last season at Pittsburgh, earning All-ACC first-team honors.
Traore (6-8, 210 pounds) averaged 10.8 points and 7.3 rebounds in 25.5 minutes per game in 33 games last season for ADA Blois of LNB Élite in France.
Two-way contracts are deals intended for development, with players going back and forth between a franchise’s NBA team and G League affiliate.
Only players with three or fewer years of NBA experience can sign two-way contracts. Two-way players have a 50-game limit in the regular season to be on their NBA team’s active roster.
Hinson and Traore join big man Colin Castleton as Lakers’ players signed to two-way deals. All three are on the team’s summer league roster, headlined by Dalton Knecht and Bronny James, the franchise’s selections in last week’s NBA draft.
The Lakers’ summer league team will begin play on Saturday against the Sacramento Kings at Chase Center in San Francisco (1:30 p.m.; ESPN) in the smaller California Classic that runs from Saturday-Wednesday before heading to Las Vegas for the league-wide summer league (July 12-22).
The Lakers will also play the Golden State Warriors on Sunday (3:30 p.m.; NBA TV) and the Miami Heat on Wednesday (4 p.m.; ESPN2) in the California Classic.
Lakers coach JJ Redick said South Bay Lakers head coach Dane Johnson will be at the helm of the Lakers during summer league before saying that he’ll be “heavily involved in practices” and “in some capacity during the games, during film.”
After being introduced in a news conference at the Lakers’ El Segundo practice facility on Tuesday, Knecht, the No. 17 pick in the draft, signed his rookie scale contract with the Lakers. Knecht, 23, signed a four-year, $14.48 million deal. The former Tennessee All-American guard has a $4.01 million salary for 2025-26, with the third ($4.2 million) and fourth ($6.4 million) years of the contract being team options.
“It’s gonna be a lot of fun,” Knecht said of summer league. “Just get out on the court with all the guys.”
James, the son of Lakers star LeBron James who was selected with the 55th overall pick after one season at USC, reportedly signed a four-year, $7.9 million contract with a team option on the final season. The 19-year-old guard will have a $1.6 million salary for 2024-25.
“Just getting a feel for the game, especially at a next level,” the younger James said of summer league. “just excited to go out there and compete with some great players. And being able to take this time to get ready for what’s to come.”