It seems unfair to the rest of the NBA that the 10–4 Lakers, 4th in the West and 5th in the league right now, can now add LeBron James, the ultimate jack-of-all-trades basketball superstar, to their already impressive roster.

Rob Pelinka said at the start of the season that he’d wait until 20 to 25 games to see what the team needs before making decisions about possible trades. Now 14 games into the season, the Lakers’ needs have still not changed. Despite a strong overachieving start, to win a championship, the Lakers still need a 3&D starting small forward who can shut down high powered wing scorers and a shot blocking backup center who can protect the rim.

When ready, JJ Redick should start LeBron James and move Rui Hachimura to the bench for more firepower. The Lakers’ starting lineup would then be Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Marcus Smart, LeBron James, Deandre Ayton.
The Lakers bench would be Gabe Vincent, Dalton Knecht, Jake LaRavia, Rui Hachimura, Maxi Kleber with Adou Thiero pushing for minutes. Jarred Vanderbilt, Bronny James, and Jaxson Hayes would be outside the rotation.

The one question the Lakers hope to answer in the next 9 games before December 15th is whether LeBron, in short bursts, could be the lockdown wing defender and backup shot blocking center they desperately need.
As LeBron himself said, he has no problem doing whatever the Lakers need from him to help the team win, whether it be spacing the floor, cutting back door, defending at point-of-attack, or protecting the rim.

LeBron could transform Lakers into a championship team by empowering Luka and Austin’s playmaking, helping Deandre by spacing the floor and protecting the rim, and turbo-charging the bench with Austin and Rui.

LEBRON ‘OFF-BALL’ EMPOWERS LUKA & AUSTIN ‘ON-BALL’

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In the NFL, great quarterbacks sometimes need great receivers to win. The same is true in the NBA. JJ Redick believes LeBron’s all-world off-the-ball skills could be what unleashes the on-ball wizardry of Luka and Austin.

Unlike last season when the Lakers’ three stars often appeared to be taking turns on offense, JJ Redick has been staggering Luka and Austin so one of their elite point guards is always on the court for 48 minutes of every game.
That rotation strategy as well as their ‘next-man-up’ mentality have been why the Lakers’ have the fifth best record in the league despite posting average offensive rating (#17), defensive rating (#17), and net rating (#16).

LeBron missing the first 14 games of the year gave Austin the opportunity to take his game to another level and the Luka and Austin pairing the opportunity to show they can be a championship caliber backcourt.
Despite the chaotic start, staggering Doncic and Reaves has given Redick his championship blueprint. Create an unstoppable synergy between LeBron’s off-ball GOAT skillset and Luka’s and Austin’s super playmaking.

Keeping the ball in Luka’s and Austin’s hands while LeBron plays almost exclusively off the ball is the perfect move to transform the Lakers from a finesse to a power team. LeBron James will be unstoppable off the ball.
Imagine James cutting back door, crashing the offensive boards, setting picks for Luka and Austin, then rolling to the basket where he can dunk, throw a lob for Deandre, or fire a pass to the corner for an open three.

LeBron James’ superstar ‘off-ball’ skills and talent could empower Luka Doncic’s and Austin Reaves’ on-ball magic and turn the Los Angeles Lakers into a legitimate contender for the NBA championship this season.

LEBRON AT POWER FORWARD HELPS DEANDRE AT CENTER

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Replacing Rui Hachimura with LeBron James would transform the Lakers’ starting lineup from a mostly finesse team into more of a power team that attempts to win by ratcheting up the physicality at both ends of the court.

While offense-first Rui Hachimura is a better power forward than small forward, he’s not the perfect match front court next to offense-first Deandre Ayton since he cannot stretch the floor or protect the rim.
James replacing Hachimura would immediately upgrade the Lakers’ starting lineups’ size, athleticism, physicality, and toughness. Meanwhile, Rui gets a bigger role and the Lakers’ bench gets needed firepower.

LeBron is actually the perfect power forward to complement Deandre Ayton, who’s played great for the Lakers but lacks the ability to protect the rim and stretch the floor, which are skillsets needed to complement Luka.
Remember the version of LeBron we’re going to see is an off-ball monster. Giving point guards Luka and Austin the lethal 100% off-ball version of LeBron would be like giving your quarterback an all-world wide receiver.

Adding James to the front court and keeping Smart in the backcourt gives the Lakers’ starting lineup two elite defenders for better starting balance and versatility while moving Rui to the bench gives them needed scoring.
For now, Lakers still need to start Marcus Smart. They need a blockbuster trade for an elite 3&D small forward like Andrew Wiggins or Dillon Brooks, who would then replace the smaller Marcus Smart in the starting lineup.

LeBron James starting at power forward will make Deandre Ayton a better center and give the Lakers a legitimate championship caliber front court that can run the pick-and-roll, stretch the floor, and protect the rim.

AUSTIN ‘ON-BALL’ & RUI ‘OFF-BALL’ TURBOCHARGE BENCH

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Right now, the Lakers’ bench ranks dead last in the league averaging just 24.2 points per game. Adding Rui Hachimura to the bench would instantly raise the team’s bench points to 40 points per game and a top10 rank.

Just like LeBron James will be the primary ‘off-ball’ target for Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves in the starting lineup, Rui Hachimura will now become the primary ‘off-ball’ target off the bench for Austin Reaves to optimize.
Moving Hachimura to the bench will be a challenge but Rui loves the Lakers and they need his elite 3-point and midrange shooting off bench. Assuming Rui embraces his role, give him more shots and his extension.

Since the Lakers are staggering Doncic and Reaves, it will mostly be Austin who will be paired with Rui off the bench. As a starter, Rui would have clearly been the fifth option after Luka, Austin, LeBron, and Deandre.
Coming off the bench, Rui will be the second option after Luka or Austin defended by a bench player from the opposing team. He should be able to get more and better touches and shots and be a top 6MOY candidate.

In addition to adding Rui Hachimura, the Lakers’ bench is finally getting healthy with Maxi Kleber and Adou Thiero already back from injury and Gabe Vincent close to returning. Rotation changes are surely coming.
Right now, I like a bench of Gabe Vincent, Dalton Knecht, Jake LaRavia, Rui Hachimura, and Maxi Kleber with Adou Thiero pushing for minutes and Bronny James, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Jaxson Hayes seeing few minutes.

LeBron James returning from injury also transform the Lakers into a championship team by replacing Rui Hachimura in the starting lineup and sending him to the bench where he will get more touches and points.

BREAKING: LeBron James is expected to make his season debut today against the Jazz, per ESPN. Year 23 has officially begun. pic.twitter.com/ij8KHPYF6K— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) November 18, 2025

The Los Angeles Lakers face three imminent deadlines where they’ll face challenging decisions about their roster makeup that could determine whether they’ll be a play-in team or legitimate championship contender.

The first of the three deadlines facing the Lakers is November 18, when LeBron James will likely make his season debut at home vs. the Jazz and coach Redick must decide who starts alongside Luka, Austin, and LeBron. The second deadline facing the Lakers is December 15, when recently traded or signed players can be traded and the team will have played the 20 to 25 games Rob Pelinka said was necessary to determine what they need.

The third and final deadline facing the Lakers is February 4, the last day teams can officially trade players and finalize exactly how much open cap space and matching salary they will be projected to have next summer.
The Lakers need to make a major consolidation trade before the deadline. Excluding Doncic and Reaves, the Lakers currently have $96.7M in expiring contracts but only $17.4M in contracts which could be traded next summer.

The Lakers have too many non-LeBron expiring contracts and too few contracts that can be traded with their three picks next summer. They need to trade some expiring contracts for contracts they can trade next summer.
Unless Giannis and Joker demand a trade, the Lakers will likely opt to trade most of their expiring contracts other than LeBron for depth, defense, and shooting while allowing some contracts to expire to create cap space.

Let’s look at the deadlines where the Lakers face challenging decisions: November 18, 2025: ‘When LeBron James returns’, December 15, 2025: ‘When 23-Game Trial Ends’, and February 4, 2026: ‘NBA trade deadline.’

1. November 18, 2025: ‘When LeBron Returns’

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November 18 is when LeBron James is projected to make his season debut at home against the Jazz and when JJ Redick will be forced to decide who will be the Lakers’ fifth starter alongside Doncic, James, Reaves, and Ayton.

Without LeBron James, the Lakers have settled on a starting lineup of Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Marcus Smart, Rui Hachimura, and Deandre Ayton. LeBron James will thus replace either Rui Hachimura or Marcus Smart.
Whom Redick chooses to start between Hachimura and Smart will give us a good sense of how the young coach is growing. Does he opt to go big with Rui Hachimura’s elite offense or small with Marcus Smart’s fierce defense?

What makes choosing between Hachimura and Smart a touch decision for JJ is the best version of these Lakers once everybody is healthy and they pull off a needed consolidation trade is most likely the ‘big’ version.
But right now, the eye test and numbers say JJ Redick should go small and start Marcus Smart with his elite defense and turn Rui Hachimura into the Lakers’ 6th-of-the-year candidate and instant scorer off the bench.

The Lakers’ starters have struggled defensively to stop penetration and protect the rim while their bench has struggled offensively to score, averaging a league low 24.2 points per game. The solution is obvious.
The starters need Marcus Smart, who’s #1 in defensive rating, #2 in plus/minus, and #3 in net rating while the bench needs Rui Hachimura, who’s #3 in made 3’s, #3 in field goal percentage, and #4 in points per game.

On November 18 when LeBron James returns, Lakers’ coach JJ Redick should continue to start Marcus Smart for leadership and defense while moving Rui Hachimura to the bench for more offensive firepower.

2. December 15, 2025: ‘When 23-Game Trial Ends’

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December 15 is when recently traded or signed players can be traded and when the 20 to 25 game trial period Pelinka set before the season will end. It’s also when Rob Pelinka said the Lakers should be ready to make a trade.

The return of James (as well as Kleber, Thiero, and soon Vincent) should empower the Lakers to continue winning on their current ‘60-win’ pace without having to overly rely upon their special ‘next-man-up’ magic.
While the Lakers still have 9 games remaining before December 15, their needs haven’t changed. They still need an elite 3&D point-of-attack starting small forward with size and defense-first backup center to protect the rim.

Up to now, the 10–4 Lakers have been dramatically overachieving, posting the 4th best record in the West and 5th best in the league but with just 16th best offensive rating, 14th best defensive rating, and 16th best net rating.
While the big win over the Bucks to end the road trip helped restore the team’s innate confidence in itself, the underlying stats confirm the Lakers still need a blockbuster trade to be a legitimate championship contender.

The Los Angeles Lakers have to be extremely happy with where the team is right now. Both Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves have elevated their games and cemented themselves as the purple and gold backcourt of the future.
With the team finally nearing full health and firmly positioned as a top-5 team in the league, the Lakers may not need to make an immediate trade on December 15 and could even wait until February 4, 2026 trade deadline.

On December 15 when most players can be traded and Rob’s 20 to 25 game trial period ends, Rob Pelinka should start pursuing a 3-for-1 or 4-for-2 blockbuster consolidation trade to position the Lakers for the stretch run.

3. February 4, 2026: ‘NBA Trade Deadline

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February 4 is the last day Rob Pelinka can officially make consolidation trades for an elite 3&D starting small forward and shot blocking backup center and finalize cap space and matching salary for next summer.

Frankly, the Lakers are in an envious position right now because they have miraculously survived a dangerous early injury and schedule nightmare to suddenly emerge healthy and hungry as the 5th best team in the league.
As long as LA continues on this current ‘60-win’ pace, Pelinka can sit back and focus on finding best deal for the starting small forward and backup center they need. For a change, Rob’s ‘best’ strategy could be to wait.

For one thing, the question that only games and wins can answer is how good could the Lakers be without any changes but with everybody healthy? The 33 games we will play before February 4 could answer that question.
A starting lineup of Doncic, Reaves, James, Ayton, and Smart could be an offensive juggernaut while Vincent, Thiero/Vanderbilt, LaRavia/Knecht, Hachimura, and Hayes/Kleber could be a dynamic bench mob if healthy.

Bottom line, while great early play by Luka, Austin, and the Lakers has raised their floor and ceiling as a team, it does not change their strong need for an elite starting small forward and shot blocking backup center to win.
The Lakers may lack the draft capital to trade for both a starting small forward like Wiggins or Brooks and a shot blocking center like Gafford or Williams. but they need to fill at least one of their holes at the deadline

On February 6, the NBA trade deadline, Rob Pelinka needs to make sure to fill at least one of the Lakers’ need for an elite 3&D starting small forward or backup shot blocking center and clean up the team’s cap for next season.

The marriage between Anthony Davis and the Lakers was fractured before Luka Doncic was even an option. After months of gathering intel, here is what I found out about AD's relationship with the Lakers, including secret AD trade talks before Luka: https://t.co/YcjGBDuXHY— Brett Siegel (@BrettSiegelNBA) November 14, 2025

I'll be the first to tell lineup data so early is very noisy, but Rui+Ayton numbers haven't shown anything to erase preseason doubts.Lineups with those two among the top in NBA in opponent corner 3 frequency, and bad opp rim FG% numbers. pic.twitter.com/Wjas0ACTzr— Iztok Franko (@iztok_franko) November 10, 2025