Lakerholics

After 3 straight heart-breaking losses, the Lakers may have found how to transform their Big Three starting lineup from a struggling fivesome that’s losing the minutes it’s on the court into a legitimate offensive juggernaut.

While the sample size is 2 just games against the undermanned Warriors and Kings, JJ Redick and the Lakers made a concerted effort the last 2 games to surround their Big Three with floor spacers and shot makers. The result was a road thrashing of the Warriors sans Curry 129–101 on Saturday and a home drubbing of the hapless Kings 128–104 on Sunday for a 2-game 129.8 offensive (#2), 104.1 defensive (#8), and +25.7 net rating (#4).

Before this weekend, LA’s Big Three had only played together for 238 minutes in 14 games posting a mediocre 109.6 offensive, 114.5 defensive, and -4.0 net rating. While sample size was small, the results were poor.
This weekend, that same lineup had a 121.7 offensive (#4), 82.9 defensive (#6), and +38.9 net rating (#4) and were #1 in FGA and #2 in FG%, #4 in 3PM and #1 in 3P%, #4 in assists, #5 in blocks, and #1 in fewest turnovers.

That’s a winning formula for the Lakers. Better floor spacing, playmaking, and shotmaking are the keys to unlocking the offensive juggernaut upside of the Lakers’ Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves Big Three.
We should also see better lineup stability as JJ has now settled on an offense-first starting lineup of Doncic, Reaves, Smart, James, and Ayton backed by a bench of Kennard, LaRavia, Hachimura, Kleber, and Hayes.

With their major rebuild around Luka postponed until next summer, the Lakers are betting their best opportunity to compete for championship this year is to double down on transforming their Big Three into a juggernaut.

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BEST WAY TO FIX LAKERS’ DEFENSE IS TO FIX OFFENSE!

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Facing a total roster overhaul and rebuild next summer, Redick obviously decided the fastest and easiest way to help the Lakers’ bottom-5 defense would be to turn his top-10 offense into an legitimate offensive juggernaut.

Unlike baseball where players take turns playing offense and defense or football where offense and defense use totally different lineups, offense and defense in basketball are intrinsically and synergistically connected.
In basketball, how a team plays on offense often determines how they play on defense. Live ball turnovers, bad shot selection, poor ball movement, not getting touches are all offensive failures that hurt the team’s defense.

Because offense and defense play continuously in basketball, offensive mistakes like turning the ball over or missing layups often lead to fast break opportunities that negatively impact critical team defensive stats.
The best way to fix the Lakers’ defense is to fix their offense by increasing assists to 30 per game, reducing turnovers to under 10 per game, and by boosting 3-point attempts to 40 per game and makes to 15 per game.

With their extreme roster makeover postponed to next summer and Luka Doncic the only player guaranteed to to be part of the team going forward, the Lakers’ morale is struggling as half the team are on expiring contracts.
JJ Redick knows that most that players always play better defense when they’re getting touches and shots and are involved offensively. That’s why the Lakers chose to improve their defense by improving their offense.

While they will need better defenders to totally turn around their defense, the quickest and easiest way for the Lakers to fix their broken defense is to fix the specific offensive issues that negatively impact the team’s defense.

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TRANSFORMING LAKERS INTO 3-POINT JUGGERNAUT

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The last 2 games, we finally saw what the Lakers’ Big Three starters could do with better spacing, playmaking, and shotmaking as they dominated the 3-point battle with 18.5 made threes out of 40.0 attempted threes per game.

Before the weekend, the Lakers played 58 games during which they made 679 threes for 2,037 points and allowed 777 threes for 2,331 points. At that point, the Lakers had allowed 294 more points or -5.1 points per game.
During 2 games with better spacing, playmaking, and shotmaking, the Lakers made 37 out of 80 attempts from deep for a 3P% of 46.3% while defensively allowing just 18 out of 70 opponent threes for a 3P% of 25.7%.

While the Lakers can’t change their roster, one thing they can change is how they play. The Lakers need to modernize their offense and start calling plays and running sets designed to take 40 and make 15 threes per game.
Flipping their 3-point differential is the biggest way the Lakers can fix their offense. They’re currently taking 33.5 threes per game and making 11.9 for 35.7%. If they could take 40 and make 15 threes per game, they’d be top-5.

Redick also started converting lethal Luke Kennard into a high volume 3-point shooter by playing him with Luka, LeBron, and Austin. This weekend Luke averaged 13.5 points and 3.5 made threes in 26.4 minutes per game.
Another player who had a great weekend and gave Vanderbilt’s 2 DNP’s was stretch center Maxi Kleber. While he didn’t take a three, Maxi averaged 5.0 points, 4.0 boards, 0.5 assist, 0.5 steal, 2.0 blocks in 13.1 minutes per game.

To become a juggernaut, the Lakers must call plays and run sets to create 6.5 more 3-point takes per game and 3.1 more 3-point makes per game. Doing that would flip the Lakers’ 3-point differential from -5.1 to +9.8.

The silver lining behind the Lakers’ 3-game collapse is mounting pressure on Redick to break up their Big Three to upgrade and rebalance both their starting lineup and rotation by having James and Ayton come off bench.

Right now, the Lakers are a mess. Their 3-game losing streak has dropped them to #6 seed in the West with just a 1-game lead over Phoenix, who just won their third straight against LA to lock up their 4-game season series. The earlier chemistry and camaraderie that made the team unbeatable in clutch games has turned into lackluster performances, unforced errors, and absence of trust from players who know they won’t be here next year.

Only a fool would continue to ignore the negative net ratings generated by the Lakers’ Big Three of Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves. Statistically, the Big Three simply cannot win their minutes on the court.
Yet Redick keeps throwing them out there for 16 minutes per game or one third of the total minutes in a normal NBA game. No matter how you slice it, the Lakers Big Three gives up 10 points per game more than they score.

What’s even more frustrating is the Lakers’ lineup data confirms that there are winning lineups with Luka, Austin, and Jaxson and backup lineups with LeBron, Rui, and Deandre that win the minutes they’re on the court.
For an organization whose ‘best practices’ should include analytics and data driven decision making, the Lakers must listen to the data, break up the Big Three, and move LeBron James and Deandre Ayton to the bench.

Redick needs to take the bull by the horns and sit down with LeBron and show him why the Lakers must break up the Big Three and create two new starter-quality lineups, one led by Luka and Austin and one led by LeBron.

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REDICK NEEDS TO CONVINCE JAMES TO COME OFF BENCH

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No NBA head coach wants to be the one to ask LeBron James to come off the bench after starting for over 23 years because Lakers need to upgrade and rebalance their starting lineup’s defense and their bench’s offense.

Yet that’s exactly the situation second year Lakers’ head coach JJ Redick finds himself in right now. While the sample size is relatively small, the Lakers’ Big Three has struggled to win the minutes they’re on the court.
The numbers don’t lie. Starting Doncic, Reaves, and James has not been the juggernaut the Lakers hoped for. The trio’s major skillsets are redundant on offense and their offense-first approach undermines the starters’ defense.

Frankly, LeBron’s too smart to be surprised when JJ sits down with him and suggests the only way the Lakers can get transform the team is to break up the Big Three and have him come off the bench. He already knows that.
But LeBron also realizes the Lakers are likely to move on without him next season and that Luka and Austin are clearly the franchise’s future priority. The result is LeBron James suddenly isn’t willing to defer to Austin Reaves.

The challenge facing JJ Redick is the time is rapidly coming when he must sit down with his good friend and former podcast partner to suggest that the Lakers need to break up the Big Three with him going to the bench.
LeBron James to the bench has become the giant elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about but is suddenly causing tension and conflict between the Big Three that’s partly behind why the team has cratered.

In the end, breaking up the starting Big Three, starting Luka and Austin, and having LeBron come off the bench is the only viable Hail Mary the Lakers and JJ Redick have to transform this season from loser to winner

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TIME IS FINALLY RIGHT FOR LEBRON TO COME OFF BENCH

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The harsh reality is the heavy weight of Father Time is finally starting to tarnish the greatness of LeBron James as he struggles to finish at the rim, control his once elite handle, and shoot a high percentage from deep.

Like he was forced to come off the bench in the All-Star Game, the time has come for LeBron to come off the bench for the Lakers. LA doesn’t have role players to make the Big Three work and they can’t bench Luka or Austin.
Moving LeBron James to the bench also makes it easier for JJ Redick to sell Deandre Ayton on how many more shots and touches he would receive as the second or third option coming off the bench with LeBron and Rui.

While there’s a risk in asking LeBron and Deandre to come off the bench, it’s the only viable roster move left for JJ to make. He needs to listen to what the data is telling him and break up the Big Three as soon as possible.
We’ve seen in these last three losses exactly what is going to happen to this team if we do not make major changes. All the chemistry and camaraderie of the great early start to the season has been lost in the recent collapse.

Frankly, LeBron James finishing the season and playoffs coming off the bench but winning would just confirm the greatness of his career. Nobody understands how to play the game the right way more than LeBron.
Every great player says all that matters is winning championships but how many legends are willing to come off the bench or sacrifice shots and touches or take less than their max salary to win that championship?

After 23 seasons of unquestioned greatness, LeBron James will ultimately agree that the time has come for him to come off the bench so the Lakers can optimize their talent and have a chance to win another championship.

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DEANDRE WILL GET MORE SHOTS & TOUCHES OFF BENCH

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The silver lining in breaking up the Big Three and moving James to the bench is it gives Redick an opportunity to promote Hayes as new starting center and move Deandre Ayton to the bench with LeBron and Rui.

Hopefully, playing alongside two other former starters in LeBron and Rui and being promised more shots and touches will ease the sting out for Deandre of being moved to the bench. Lakers still to need Ayton’s best.
We’re already seeing JJ rolling out LeBron lineups without Luka and Austin where James essentially plays point guard and feeds Deandre and Rui with wide open shot opportunities. Those are the winning LeBron lineups.

Redick’s goal should be to create two legitimate starter-quality 5-man lineups that can each dominate their minutes on the court and then let them compete against each other to see who can create best net rating.
While Luka and Austin can become an offensive juggernaut, they’re never going to be as good defensively as the LeBron only lineups, which can be customized with shooters like Kennard and defenders like Vanderbilt.

JJ Redick needs to find ways for every player on the Lakers to feel needed and empowered and to be given an opportunity to show what they can do to help the team win, which is not how this team obviously feels right now.
The Lakers’ mental state is teetering right now. Deandre Ayton is the perfect example of a player who suddenly feels left out without nothing to play for but stats. It’s what happens when everybody’s contracts expire.

While Deandre may not be their center of the future, JJ needs him to buy in on moving to the bench with LeBron and Rui if the Lakers are successfully going to play their way out of this hole and into the playoffs this season.

JJ Redick has an opportunity to prove to new owner Mark Walter and the entire Lakers organization that he’s destined to become their next great head coach by making critical changes to solve their Big Three dilemma.

The sample size is small but numbers don’t lie. The Lakers’ Big Three of Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and LeBron James has played 192 minutes in 12 games with 107.7 Offensive, 117.4 Defensive, and -9.7 net rating. Sunday night, the Doncic, Reaves, and James Big Three had their worst offensive game of the season, being dominated by Boston 111–89, playing 20 minutes and posting 104.7 offense, 122.7 defense, and -19.1 net rating.

The Lakers’ only Big Three lineup so far this season to win their minutes played is the 2-man lineup of Doncic and Reaves, which played 511 minutes in 21 games with a solid 116.3 offense, 111.2 defense, +5.0 net rating.
LeBron’s 2-man lineups struggled. He played 725 minutes with Luka in 32 games with 111.9 offense, 117.9 defense, -5.9 net rating and 390 minutes with Austin in 17 games with 110.5 offense, 116.2 defense, -5.7 net rating.

Currently 5th in the West with a 34–22 record, Redick has just 26 games before the playoffs to solve the Big Three dilemma, save the season, and show he has the vision and courage to be the Lakers’ coach of the future.
After starting 15–4, the Lakers have evolved into a .500 team, going 19–18 over their last 37 games. With a tough closing schedule, LA could easily go 7–19 to finish the season 41–41unless JJ can pull off a coaching miracle.

If JJ wants to save his job and become the Lakers’ head coach of the future, he cannot stay the course. He must aggressively solve the team’s ‘Big Three’ problem, finish the regular season strong, and overachieve in the playoffs.

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CAN REDICK MAKE LAKERS ‘BIG THREE’ LINEUP WORK?

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Realistically, JJ Redick has two options to save this season and his job. The first option is to figure out how to make the Big Three starting lineup work. If that fails, his second option is convince LeBron to come off the bench.

After Sunday night’s devastating blowout by the Celtics, the Lakers should understand how precarious their situation is right now. After a 15–4 start, the Lakers have evolved into a .500 team, going 19–18 in their last 37 games.
Right now, they face a difficult schedule where 19 of their last 26 games are against teams with a winning record. Go 7–19 and Lakers finish year 41–41.
In the end, JJ must solve the Lakers’ Big Three problem to save his job.

At this point, Redick needs to be honest with his players, letting them know the primary plan is to figure out how to transform the Big Three starting lineup into the juggernaut everybody expected that can win its minutes.
But Redick also needs the team to understand failure to build a winning Big Three starting lineup will ultimately lead to breaking up the Big Three to build better balanced lineups with LeBron likely coming off the bench.

So what can JJ realistically do to make the Lakers’ Big Three play winning basketball? To start with, JJ needs to start calling a lot more plays and replacing lower performing iso ball with higher performing called plays.
Right now, the Lakers’ starting lineup has become a boring my-turn-your-turn half-court iso offense. The Big Three haven’t built any chemistry or synergy. It’s also time for Jaxson Hayes to start over Deandre Ayton.

While 12 games is a small sample size, the numbers and the eye test both say transforming Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and LeBron James into a Big Three that wins the minutes they play together may simply not be possible.

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CAN REDICK CONVINCE LEBRON TO COME OFF BENCH?

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Should JJ Redick not be able to figure out how to transform the Lakers’ Big Three starting lineup into a juggernaut, his only other option would be to break up the Big Three and convince LeBron James to come off the bench.

Internally, the Lakers’ ‘best practices’ under new owner Mark Walter should emphasize data-driven decision making. The numbers are basically screaming the Lakers’ Big Three starting lineup is not a winning lineup.
But alternatively, the numbers are also saying that there’s an elite starting lineup Redick can build around Luka, Austin, Marcus, and Jax and a second starter-quality lineup built around LeBron, Rui, Vando, and Deandre.

While asking LeBron James to come off the bench seems like a risky move, the subject’s already appeared in numerous articles and the noise will only get louder as the starting Big Three continues to lose their minutes played.
There’s also a point where LeBron will see the writing on the wall and may actually volunteer to come off the bench for the Lakers. That’s the solution Redick’s relationship with James should ultimately bring to fruition.

LeBron is also smart enough to know the Lakers starting Big Three is simply not working. The tendency is to take turns and there are not enough balls, shooters, defenders, or glue guys to build a real winning lineup.
James can also see that the he’s the logical choice to come off the bench, just like he recently did in the All-Star game. Reddick can’t wait too long for a miracle. LeBron should start coming off the bench before playoffs.

The last thing Redick wants to do is quietly stick with his Big Three starting lineup come hell or high water. That would be professional suicide that could easily lose Redick any chance at being the Lakers coach of the future.

The NBA Trade Deadline has now passed and, other than waiving a player to add a last minute surprise buyout candidate, the Lakers now have their complete 15-player roster for the regular season stretch run and playoffs.

Despite delaying their roster makeover until next summer when they’ll have 3 tradable first round picks and $60 million in cap space, the Lakers still need to finish this season strong to save Pelinka’s and Redick’s jobs. Right now, the Lakers are 33–21, #5 seed in the West, and #9 team in the league. To survive this gap year, the Lakers will need to revamp their starting and bench lineups to better optimize and balance their talent.

Pelinka and Redick face difficult situations as they were not hired by Mark Walter and only have the rest of the season and the playoffs to show they deserve to still be in charge for next summer’s extreme roster makeover.
Since landing Luka, Pelinka has wasted 2 trade deadlines and 1 offseason without adding an established starter. Meanwhile, Redick has done a good job in the regular season but needs to prove he can win in the playoffs.

The only solution to salvage this situation is to replace the current no-defense Big Three starting lineup that has a negative net rating and the current inefficient no-offense bench that ranks #30 in points per game.
Instead of a star-studded starting lineup and weak bench, the Lakers must listen to the data, which says they can build two elite balanced data-driven 5-man lineups, one around Luka and Austin and a second around LeBron.

Let’s review the Lakers’ 15-man roster for regular season stretch run and playoffs and see what the numbers say are the team’s best options to build an elite competitive starting lineup and rotation to salvage this gap year.

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WHAT DO THE NUMBERS SAY?

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Despite expectations they would be an offensive juggernaut, the numbers say the Lakers’ Big Three of Doncic, Reaves, and James has been a major disappointment, recording a -9.6 net rating in 10 games and 152 minutes.

The harsh reality is starting Luka, Austin, and LeBron together is not a winning strategy. Playing three offense-first stars who need the ball in their hands to excel is both redundant and doomed to be horrible defensively.
The above chart not only says LeBron is not a good fit playing next to Luka and Austin but also that he and Luka or he and Austin can’t win the minutes they’re on the court together as a duo. Lakers are losing LeBron minutes.

The Lakers brain trust has a major decision to make during the All-Star break. Do they really write this year off as a gap year and keep starting the Big Three? Or do they sell LeBron that coming off the bench is the answer.
Nobody’s saying LeBron’s not good enough to start or that he would not play the same minutes or close games. We’re talking about putting him on the court in winning lineups where he’s the first rather than third option.

The numbers say the Lakers should create two new star-driven lineups, one featuring Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves to get the team off to a good start and one featuring LeBron James to dominate the middle and end of games.
Luka and Austin don’t need a third star. They need a bouncy center for vertical space and lethal shooter for horizontal space. LeBron doesn’t need a second star. When Luka and Austin rest, give him the ball, let him work.

The numbers say it’s time for the Lakers to move on from their offense-first Big Three starting lineup and weak bench and switch to a dynamic Doncic and Reaves starting lineup and elite starter-quality James backup lineup.

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WHO SHOULD START

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Building a new starting lineup around Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves should be easy as the duo has an offensive rating of 117.3, defensive rating of 110.6, and net rating of +6.7 in 19 games and 466 minutes together.

Since the Lakers will start Luka Doncic at point guard and Austin Reaves at shooting guard, they need to add a starting small forward, power forward, and center with good positional size, shooting, rebounding, and defense.
Strategically, the Lakers should view the remaining 28 games in the season as their ramp up for the playoffs and only invest playing time in players whom they believe can finish the season strong and shine in the playoffs.

The Lakers best option as a two-way 3&D starting small forward is Jake LaRavia. At 6′ 7″ with a 6′ 10″ wingspan, Jake’s shown promise as a potential future star role player with positional size and elite defensive versatility.
To better match up against bigger lineups, the Lakers should opt for a two-bigs lineup rather than a traditional power forward and center. They need a pair of versatile bigs who can stretch the floor vertically and horizontally.

With LeBron James moving to the bench, this is the perfect time to start Jaxson Hayes and move Deandre Ayton to the bench to play with LeBron. Hayes’ play has earned a level of trust at center that Ayton’s simply has not.
The ideal second big to play next to Jaxson Hayes should be Maxi Kleber, who’s healthy and thriving. Kleber and Hayes played 47 minutes in 9 games with a 114.7 offensive rating, 105.3 defensive rating, and +9.4 net rating.

The Lakers should revamp their starting lineup for more positional size, 3-point shooting, and team defense. The new Lakers’ starters should be Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Jake LaRavia, Maxi Kleber, and Jaxson Hayes.

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WHO SHOULD COME OFF BENCH?

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The numbers say LeBron James’ best 5-man lineup this season was playing with Smart, Vanderbilt, Ayton, and Hachimura, where they posted an elite 124.3 offensive rating, 102.6 defensive rating, and +21.7 net rating.

While they only played 19 minutes in 7 games, this 5-man lineup or a variation with Kennard replacing Vanderbilt should become the ultimate lineup target as the Lakers organically sub out starters for bench players.
While they won’t be using hockey substitutions, the Lakers want opposing teams to spend 90% of the game facing their new Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves led starting lineup or their new LeBron James led bench lineup.

During the final 28 games, the Lakers’ top priority is to develop the kind of chemistry and continuity they will need to salvage and survive the long regular season and then rally and win their way to the conference finals.
The Lakers need both the Luka and Austin starting lineup as well as the LeBron led bench lineup together to excel and play most of the 48 minutes of playing time in the 28 games remaining in the 2025–26 NBA Season.

Right now, the Lakers rank #28 in the league in bench scoring at 115.9 ppg. One of the things that makes this new bench lineup so dangerous is all of the bench players except Kennard have experience playing with LeBron.
The James fivesome will likely be so good that they may steal minutes from the Luka and Austin fivesome. LeBron may ultimately play fewer minutes because of not starting but his impact on closing wins could be greater.

The Lakers should revamp their bench lineup for more size, shooting, and defense. The Lakers’ new bench lineup should include Marcus Smart, Luke Kennard, Rui Hachimura, LeBron James, and Deandre Ayton.

Now that the trade deadline has passed, the Lakers have shifted their massive roster makeover to next summer when they’ll have 3 first round picks to trade and $60 million in cap space for other teams’ free agents.

Mark Walter plans to completely overhaul the Lakers front office this summer, expanding a front office and scouting department that had just a handful of people to a fully grown organization with a staff of over 100. The goal is to build a world class front office and championship scouting department for the Los Angeles Lakers that’s modeled after what Mark Walter’s crew built after buying the Los Angeles Dodgers back in 2012.

While Rob Pelinka claims Jeanie Buss and he will be running the Lakers going forward with support from Mark Walter, the more realistic view is the team’s days of being run like a family business are already long gone.
By summer, Buss and Pelinka will be quickly be assimilated into a new expanded Lakers’ executive team along with the brightest and best front office, data analytics, and team building minds Mark Walter’s could buy.

While Walter will give Pelinka and Redick a chance to show they deserve to keep their jobs, their future is understandably tied to this roster and how well this team finishes the season and how deep they go into the playoffs.
Frankly, the Lakers may need to make the conference finals to save Rob’s and JJ’s jobs and earn them a shot to pull off the massive summer rebuild. LA needs their GM and coach of the future calling next summer’s shots.

Armed with 3 first round picks and $60 million cap space, the Lakers have two potential directions next summer: trade for Antetokounmpo or try to steal restricted free agents Walker Kessler, Peyton Watson, and Tari Eason.

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TRADING FOR ANTETOKOUNMPO

Giannis Antetokounmpo, PF, 31, 6′ 11″, 7′ 3″, 243 lbs, 3-yrs $175.4M
28.0/10.0/5.6/0.7/0.9 in 29.2 mpg. 3P->0.5/1.3/39.5%

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One thing that won’t change with Mark Walter as owner of the Lakers is their legendary obsession with chasing superstars. The Lakers’ #1 priority this summer is to make a blockbuster trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Like Jerry Buss, Mark Walter firmly believes superstars are key to financial success in professional sports and transformed the Dodgers into an MLB juggernaut by relentlessly upgrading every position with superstar players.
The Lakers will not be able to replicate the Dodgers’ strategy because NBA salary cap rules make it almost impossible for teams to afford to build deep championship rosters while having to pay for more than two max salaries.

Franky, trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo should not be the Lakers’ top priority this summer because the odds of it happening are miniscule. LA is a long way from Greece and Giannis still wants to be his team’s alpha dog.
The only way the Lakers could win a Giannis trade this summer would be if he demanded to traded to them, they included Austin Reaves, and they were able to transform their 3 unprotected picks into 9 protected picks.

The Lakers will probably make a concerted effort this summer to expand their draft capital by swapping unprotected first round picks for multiple protected picks. Expect other teams to follow a similar strategy with picks.
The recent tactics by teams like the Thunder, Spurs, and Nets of building massive stockpiles of future first round and second round picks have reduced the number but increased the value of the picks other teams have.

As fascinating as it would be to see Luka Doncic paired up with Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Lakers would be smarter to pursue three elite elite younger players like Walker Kessler, Peyton Watson, and Tari Eason.

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STEALING KESSLER, WATSON, & EASON

Walker Kessler, CE, 24, 7′ 0″, 7′ 6″, 245 lbs, 1-yr $4.9M
14.4/10.8/3.0/1.8/1.4 in 30.8 mpg. 3P->1.2/1.6/75.0%

Peyton Watson, SF, 23, 6′ 8″, 7′ 1″, 200 lbs, 1-yr $4.4M
14.9/4.9/2.0/1.2/1.9 in 30.7 mpg. 3P->1.5/3.7/41.7%

Tari Eason, PF, 23, 6′ 8″, 7′ 2″, 215 lbs, 1-yr $5.47M
12.4/6.3/1.4/0.6/1.3 in 25.0 mpg. 3P->2.2/4.7/47.8%

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With 3 first-round picks and $60 million cap space, the Lakers are planning a massive summer free agency makeover by stealing 3 young non-extended restricted free agents in Walker Kessler, Peyton Watson, and Tari Eason.

Kessler, Watson, and Eason will all be restricted free agents next summer because the Jazz, Nuggets, and Rockets didn’t extend their rookie contracts for various reasons, including luxury tax and first and second apron issues.
Targeting restricted free agents is normally considered to be a risky gamble because the player’s prior team always has a 48 hour right of first refusal to match the offer and retain the player, which ties up the offered cap space.

Teams trying to steal other team’s free agents strategically make offers that the player’s original team can’t or won’t match because of the cost, poison pill, increased luxury taxes, exceeding an apron, or other financial needs.
Trying to steal 1 restricted free agent is a tricky challenge that ties up the offered cap space for 48 hours. There has never been an NBA team that tried to simultaneously steal 3 restricted free agents in a single summer.

That’s where the unlimited resources Mark Walter can bring to the Lakers comes in play. By summer, it won’t Rob Pelinka but a fully integrated front office team of advanced, experienced salary cap experts seeking solutions.
Figuring out how to simultaneously steal 3 restricted free agents from 3 NBA teams is exactly the type of innovative out-of-the-box solution Mark Walter’s Dodgers successfully parlayed into 3 World Series triumphs.

The Lakers must have something special planned for this summer to allow almost $100 million in expiring contracts walk away with nothing in return and then gamble it all on stealing 3 restricted free agents from other teams.

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CREATING STARTING LINEUP OF FUTURE

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Completing an extreme roster makeover by signing multiple restricted free agents has never been done in NBA history. However, the current timing and situation could not be more perfect for the Lakers to pull this off.

What the Lakers desperately need from next summer’s massive roster makeover is their starting 3&D small forward and starting modern center of the future to go with their Doncic and Reaves backcourt of the future.
The Lakers would love to add their power forward of the future but like Meat Loaf sang, ‘Two out of three ain’t bad’ and stealing Peyton Watson from the Nuggets and Walker Kessler from the Jazz would be grand theft.

Right now, it appears as if the Lakers could easily put together a $30 to $35 million per year offer for Peyton Watson the Nuggets would decline to match. The Nuggets would prefer losing Watson than paying luxury taxes.
Other factors include that Peyton is an LA and UCLA kid who grew up as a Lakers fan and is represented by Clutch Sports. The Lakers are also the only team projected to have cap space to sign a players to a max contract.

Walker Kessler is more challenging because Danny Ainge has said they want to keep him long-term. The Lakers would probably have to offer Kessler a $41 million max offer to get the Jazz to decline to match them.
That means the only realistic way the Lakers could get Walker Kessler is via a sign-and-trade on draft day next summer, when the Lakers could offer their 2026, 2027 (1–4), 2031, and 2033 first round picks to trade to the Jazz.

Finally, the Lakers could choose to be hardcapped by the second rather than the first apron to get another $11 million in cap space to make an offer to also add Tari Eason that the Rockets might not be willing to match.