Rob Pelinka: Lakers hope to sign 1 or 2 max players in 2018

The Los Angeles Lakers have fallen on hard times over the past half-decade, but they continue to dream big.

The current Lakers roster comprises mostly unproven prospects, but general manager Rob Pelinka and president Magic Johnson are hoping for a huge makeover next summer.

Their plan is to sign two maximum-salary free agents next July to complement their young core.

"Magic and I did a trade that allows us to have double max cap room for July 2018," Pelinka said on "The Dan Patrick Show." "With our platform, we're really hopeful that we can add maybe a superstar or two to this young core to have the best of both worlds."

Trading Timofey Mozgov and D'Angelo Russell for the expiring contract of Brook Lopez opened one max cap slot for the Lakers next summer. Finding a taker for Luol Deng or Jordan Clarkson, along with revoking other free agents, would create almost $60 million in cap room.

The obvious candidate would be Paul George, who's reportedly set on joining his hometown Lakers.

George downplayed the allure of Los Angeles after being traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder this summer, but he'll inevitably speak with the Lakers when he can become a free agent in 2018.

The second target is harder to pin down.

There are scant rumors that LeBron James would like to relocate to the West Coast with the goal of furthering his Hollywood endeavors, but the Lakers are nowhere close to contending for a championship. Leaving the weaker Eastern conference would also be an additional hurdle for James in his quest for a fourth championship.

Russell Westbrook is another star that often gets linked to Los Angeles, although he's in a strong situation in Oklahoma City. Westbrook, however, has yet to sign the supermax extension that would tie him to OKC for the next five seasons, so perhaps he might still spring free.