The Los Angeles Lakers are signing Darren Collison and Stanley Johnson to 10-day deals via hardship exemption, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Collison, 34, makes his NBA comeback after retiring in 2019. He pondered returning multiple times since and had been linked to the Lakers during those times, but a deal never came to fruition.
Collison has long been a facilitating, pass-first point guard who could hit open catch-and-shoot looks, but how he’ll play after being out for so long is unknown.
Johnson joined the South Bay Lakers, the G League affiliate, to start the season and is a strong defender despite not developing into an average shooter.
The Chicago Bulls had picked him up recently, but now he returns for a stint with Los Angeles, a team short on forward depth with Trevor Ariza out in the league’s health and safety protocol.
Collison’s addition could put Isaiah Thomas’ spot on the roster in jeopardy. Thomas signed a 10-day deal last week but hasn’t impressed in the last few games because of poor shooting combined with inadequate defense.
