Like Vando, he came into last season out of NBA shape. He looks a lot better…against summer league talent…and here’s hoping he keeps getting better.

He looked solid against Summer League level talent. Same basic package (long, nimble, athletic) but looked more sure of himself, especially on defense. A lot like a younger, lighter Hayes. Nothing to get too pumped about, he’s still a 2 way guy, but a solid 3rd option at center, should it come to it for a stretch.

I don’t know why the Trailblazers do this trade. They have 15 guys under contract and would need to cut two of their young guys they are developing. That would also give them 7 forwards with overlapping skills.

I’m not sure that is the best strategy, having ample cap space can be an asset in and of itself in that you can offer multiple desirable options to modern teams: FRPs, cap relief, and young players via signing and trading. Being able to absorb salary in the summer can be as good, if not better, then having players people want. Taking in money while offering picks and say Reaves or Rui in a S&T might be our best option.

🚨Luka Doncic WILL sign his extension with the Lakers and will to go to LA to do so before joining the Slovenian National Team Slovenia HC Aleksander Sekulić: “I expect him to arrive after August 4th, when he has completed all his obligations in the USA,”Via @Sport_Klub_Slo pic.twitter.com/yyXM967hHL— LakersMuse (@LALMuse) July 24, 2025

Luka Dončić will sign an extension with the Los Angeles Lakers on 2. or 3. August!Coach of Slovenian national team confirmed that Luka will fly to USA to "Complete all obligations" before joining the national team after August 4th.https://t.co/g8pfVluHyc pic.twitter.com/X3m4v6FeTp— Luka Updates (@LukaUpdates) July 24, 2025

lol, ok. I’ll believe it when he signs and isn’t this tampering lol

No.

We got one in Vando.

Who says it’s LeBron’s last season here? lol…Until he says otherwise the dude is a Laker.

Again, this is as much a byproduct of being the most popular basketball team on Earth in a city everyone wants to live in. Feels like Luka should get as much credit, if not more, than Rob as both Smart and Ayton singled him out as being one of if not the main factor in why they came here. We paid Goodwin to walk, that’s not a genius move…that’s not having confidence you can make a better move before it smacks you in the face.

Luka went to the NBA Finals 2 years ago, he doesn’t need redemption’s…

FROM THE ABOVE ARTICLE:

There’s a 22-minute video on YouTube of Marcus Smart’s greatest plays as a member of the Boston Celtics, 36 different moments of exactly the kinds of plays the Lakers are hoping he can make now that he’s on their team.

The clips show it all — meeting LeBron James at the rim to block a dunk, sticking a paw in between a Shai-Gilgeous Alexander crossover, fighting off Joel Embiid for a putback, splashing jumpers over Kyrie Irving, beating Giannis Antetokounmpo to a loose ball and ripping a steal out of Franz Wagner’s hands. It’s the resume of a big-time player making big-time plays in big-time games.

It’s just that these big-time games … they kinda happened a long time ago.

LeBron and Kyrie are playing for the Cavs in the video. SGA doesn’t have braids or a headband. Embiid was in a protective facemask (and otherwise healthy). Antetokounmpo was in that phase where he was still trying to harness his athleticism, and so on and so forth — one big play pressed against a reminder of a time in the NBA gone by.

Marcus Smart can make winning plays; he’s shown it. It’s just been a minute.

Tuesday afternoon, he arrived at the Lakers’ facility in El Segundo in a black Cadillac Escalade, greeted by an embrace from Lakers president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka. Both men are hopeful there are more moments to be delivered, more possessions to be secured with a dive into the crowd or with a sprawl to the court.

“I still have a lot left in the tank,” Smart said.

Injuries have gotten in the way the past two seasons, with Smart playing only 54 out of a possible 164 games since the Celtics traded him in 2023. Ankle and finger injuries have been the main culprits, but the 31-year-old former Defensive Player of the Year has dealt with shoulder and knee issues, too.

But the Lakers are in position to bet precisely on someone like Smart in this moment, signing him for $5.1 million after Smart secured a buyout with the Washington Wizards. If those past injuries aren’t flukes, if they are just the costs of a career where every loose ball was worth risking it all for, then the Lakers aren’t committed beyond a modest player option for next season.

If they are flukes, the Lakers got a player Luka Dončić specifically wanted to play with.

“When you get a guy like Luka calling, referencing, checking on you, trying to see where you at … to see if you want to come and join something special that he’s trying to cook up over here,” Smart said. “And for him to say that he can really use my help, that meant a lot.”

The Lakers definitely need Smart’s help. The roster lacks the kind of player who could credibly try and stop James or Dončić, the kind of player who can free up Austin Reaves from being the primary defender called upon to slow the best backcourt players the Lakers face.

“Just to be me. Come in and do what I do and that’s a tenacious defender, just bringing the intensity that I bring, my leadership, my basketball IQ as well,” Smart said of his role. “But just being the pest that I’ve always been.”

He’s done it. Deandre Ayton has done the things that made him the No. 1 pick and a starting center in the NBA Finals, too. But both players sacrificed portions of their salary to leave their situations, both having their salaries subsidized by competitors as they try to rebuild their careers with the Lakers.

The Lakers and Pelinka’s summer has hinged on these kinds of bets, that the Lakers’ situation, plus some motivation from being discarded, can answer some of the team’s biggest questions.

With Smart, the proof is there that he can earn wins and that he can do it on a massive stage with expectations in the rafters and a rabid fan base in the seats. Feeling that again was part of the reason he came to Los Angeles.

“It’s at the top. I mean, the main goal, the reason you go out and you compete the way you compete is to try to win championships and what better place to be able to do that than here, where the show starts and where the show ends?” Smart said. “So, that was definitely a big part of it, being able to get back on that stage, being able to get to a team that definitely could use me. And I know I can make an impact and I can help as well and that was a perfect fit here.”

Will it be good enough in the West? Smart thinks it might be.

“I think we stack right up there with the best of them,” Smart said. “And I think we can [compete]. Our ceiling is high. I think there’s no ceiling. I think if we all lock in and come and do what we’re supposed to do, we can have a real good shot at it.”

For it to happen, Smart’s got to be on the court and he’s got to be the version of himself that fills that 22-minute highlight reel. He’s got to torture Steph Curry, frustrate Gilgeous-Alexander, fight with Nikola Jokić for rebounds and beat Anthony Edwards to loose balls.

We know Dončić thinks he can do it. And Tuesday, we got confirmation that Smart believes him.

“I’m very motivated,” he said.

FROM THE ABOVE ARTICLE:

Jarred Vanderbilt’s time with the Los Angeles Lakers has been largely defined by injuries. The defensive-minded forward is looking to make that sentiment a thing of the past.

In the same report where Marc Stein created excitement for Lakers fans around the diligent work of Marcus Smart to get to his best playing shape since his days with the Boston Celtics, the NBA insider noted the new signing is not the only one working hard on their body. Vanderbilt is too.

Stein wrote, “I’m also hearing Jarred Vanderbilt is healthier now than he was at any point last season, which will naturally spark hope that the versatile forward seems like an offseason addition himself when training camp opens in late September.”

For a Lakers team that was crying out for depth amid their premature exit from the 2025 NBA Playoffs, this development is sure to create excitement. Having the best version of Vanderbilt would go a long way to filling a much-needed role on the roster for the 2025-26 NBA season.

Vanderbilt’s defensive presence would be a massive gift for Lakers

Vanderbilt joined the Lakers during the 2022-23 season as a part of the trade that freed the team from the disappointing Russell Westbrook experiment. The 26-year-old actually remains as the sole survivor of that deal who still resides in Los Angeles.

D’Angelo Russell was sent packing in the trade that brought Dorian Finney-Smith to the Lakers. Malik Beasley was never re-signed after his initial stint with the team, joining the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2023 free agency period.

Vanderbilt’s early sample size with the Lakers was impressive enough to earn him a contract extension with the Lakers pretty quickly. His emergence as a defensive stopper in their rotation secured a four-year, $48 million deal to stay with Los Angeles for the long haul.

Since then, that contract has been the subject of countless numbers of mock trades done by Lakers fans. Vanderbilt’s inability to stay on the court quickly soured the reason for optimism that was offered during the Lakers’ run to the Western Conference Finals in 2023.

Jarred Vanderbilt’s Career Perimeter Isolation Defense grades

2019: DNP enough
2020: DNP enough
2021: A-
2022: A-
2023: A-
2024: A+

— BBall Index (@The_BBall_Index) August 8, 2024
His averages of 4.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, 0.8 blocks, and 0.7 steals per game from the 2023 NBA Playoffs do not pop off the page. However, his ability take on tough defensive assignments did.

The Lakers could really use that version of Vanderbilt in 2025-26. Even after adding Smart, who should boost the team defense, JJ Redick’s unit still needs more on that end.

There are certain matchups which a healthy Vanderbilt would be much better suited due to his size and length. A healthy version of the versatile forward would allow some range in those defensive assignments too.

Vanderbilt will never be the player who makes a sizeable contribution on the offensive end. However, at his best, the defense can be something that Los Angeles would greatly desire in the upcoming campaign.

PG: LUKA DONCIC, Marcus Smart, Gabe Vincent
SG: AUSTIN REAVES, Dalton Knecht, Bronny James
SF: JARRED VANDERBILT, Jake LaRavia
PF: LEBRON JAMES, Rui Hachimura, Adou Thiero
CE: DE’ANDRE AYTON, Maxi Kleber, Jaxson Hayes