LakerTom

LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

The Los Angeles Lakers have no competition for this coming offseason.

In the madness of the NBA trade deadline, it’s easy to lose perspective. It’s just as easy to be frustrated by watching a team miss opportunities. The Los Angeles Lakers have certainly had a few of those. However, in the grand scheme of things, they have done extremely well by doing nothing at all.

The Lakers have whiffed on moves that would have allowed them to upgrade while maintaining their financial flexibility. Kevin Huerter is one example of those misses. Ochai Agbaji serves as another instance of doable and not detrimental that Los Angeles fumbled.

However, by maintaining the expiring contracts on their team, something a handful of other franchises in the NBA opted against, they have set themselves up as the biggest players in 2026 free agency. Yossi Gozlan did a great job of explaining why.

Gozlan wrote, “In the past 48 hours, the [Los Angeles] Clippers, [Utah] Jazz, and [Washington] Wizards made big trades that eliminated their cap space. The Lakers are the only competitive team remaining that can offer max cap space in the 2026 offseason.”

Lakers’ trade deadline plan continues to prioritize offseason retool

There will be a handful of Lakers fans who are frustrated with 2025-26 season being essentially treated as a gap year. Those feelings are not without some validity.

Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves are a talented trio to have and not do anything with. The Lakers and Rob Pelinka have just not given the impression they truly believe in this group being close enough to a championship. As such, the Lakers have not been buyers.

Is that the right call? That question will only truly be answered depending on the second stage of this strategy.

The Lakers have given themselves an opportunity to be the biggest players in the upcoming free agency window. Whether they can seize that moment to perfect their retool around Doncic and officially start that era in franchise history will dictate whether this was a success or failure.

It’s tough seeing James still be as good of a basketball player as he is and feel as though the Lakers are squandering that. It’s equally frustrating to watch Doncic play MVP-level basketball and not get rewarded with win-now moves.

However, the Lakers were only handed the perfect set of circumstances to land Luka. They were never given as much for molding the team around him. The plan is to figure out the latter, and that much has remained crystal clear throughout.

LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

The Pacers are sending Bennedict Mathurin, Isaiah Jackson, two first-round picks and one second-round pick to the Clippers for Zubac and Kobe Brown, sources tell ESPN. https://t.co/AFQmRFVrMQ— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 5, 2026

LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

The Milwaukee Bucks are expected to deactivate Giannis Antetokounmpo and not let him play the rest of the season if he’s not traded, per @WindhorstESPN pic.twitter.com/1cc7rvuxGh— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) February 5, 2026

LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

This offseason looks to be a big one in Los Angeles: Austin Reaves has a player-option decision, while LeBron James will be a free agent.
If Austin Reaves declines his $14.9 million player option as expected and LeBron James is wearing a different uniform next season, the Lakers are likely looking at $38 million to $47 million in cap space, depending on which of their other free agents, such as Rui Hachimura, Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart, stick around.

That is enough to make a major impact for the right player to fit next to Luka Dončić and Reaves long-term, but they would likely be an exceedingly top-heavy and eventually expensive team moving forward. That said, the right talent would make a team construction like that worth it since Reaves’ new contract likely takes them out of shifting that spending power to 2027 and beyond, though that is not 100 percent locked in yet.

LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Not a bad move. Got an elite 3-point shooter, which we desperately need, plus save $500K. Cost only second round pick. Would have preferred using second round pick to get Robert Williams.— LakerTom (@LakerTom) February 5, 2026
LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Well Lakers need shooting and they might've gotten the best shooter.Of 145 shooters that have more than 1000 three-point attempts over the last 5 seasons Kennard is miles above at no.1 at 46%.1. Luke Kennard 46.0%……2.Greyson Allen 41.6%3.Sam Hauser 41.5% https://t.co/LrQZ07whsP— Iztok Franko (@iztok_franko) February 5, 2026
LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Kennard is making $500K less than Gabe this year so the Lakers have a little extra room under that first apron to sign a buyout player if no other trades are made. https://t.co/gVdLOF28P0— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) February 5, 2026
LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Luke Kennard addresses one of the Lakers biggest needs BY FAR 🤯He has shot lights out from 3 every year in his career pic.twitter.com/BO7jj5qfT5— LakersMuse (@LALMuse) February 5, 2026
LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Players shooting 50/40/90 this season- Luke KennardEnd of list.LUKE IS SHOOTING NEARLY 50% FROM DEEP 😳 pic.twitter.com/U7NI1cazjJ— Lakers Lead (@LakersLead) February 5, 2026
MongoSlade
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Great….another one-dimensional player who does nothing to help our horrible defense. Where are his minutes even coming from?
LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

With the addition of Luke Kennard, the Lakers now possess 2 elite floorspacing release valves that opponents must respect and react toWith Rui, and now Kennard, LAL has the luxury of having perimeter gravity on the floor at all times based on preferred lineup combos— LAbound (@LAbound2) February 5, 2026
LakerTom
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Bleacher Report’s grade for the Kennard trade. pic.twitter.com/rW1hBExavK— Richard Staple, BSN, RN (@RichStapless) February 5, 2026

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