With NBA free agency officially underway, all eyes will be on the Los Angeles Lakers as they look to improve the roster ahead of a pivotal 2025-26 season.
Entering the summer, everyone around the league knew that the Lakers would be aggressively shopping for a center via the trade market. They’ve also been linked to just about every available big man in free agency, most notably Deandre Ayton, who the team was able to land after he was bought out by the Portland Trail Blazers.
Los Angeles’ roster is still thin in the frontcourt though, especially at the center position where there aren’t any viable centers still under contract outside of Ayton.
Jaxson Hayes was one of the free agent big men on the Lakers and his return was a question mark after he saw his role dwindle in the playoffs. Hayes really emerged in the second half of the season after L.A. traded Anthony Davis for Luka Doncic, but he was not able to keep up that production in the postseason and wound up on the bench.
Despite that though, Hayes is set to return to the Lakers after agreeing to a one-year contract, per Shams Charania of ESPN:
Free agent center Jaxson Hayes has agreed on a one-year deal to return to the Los Angeles Lakers, sources tell ESPN. Hayes' agents, Bill Duffy and Marlon Harrison of WME Basketball, finalized a contract with Lakers president Rob Pelinka on Thursday. pic.twitter.com/fZOeqVyo9u
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 3, 2025
Hayes has played in 126 games (40 starts) across two seasons with the Lakers and averaged 5.4 points and 3.8 rebounds. He showed spurts of why he was drafted in the lottery in 2019 but was not able to parlay his time in L.A. into a bigger deal elsewhere. Instead, he will be back with the Lakers in a familiar bench role that he thrived in before the organization traded Davis.
It’s clear that the Lakers want as many lob threats for Doncic as possible, and Hayes fit that role really well after the trade last season.
Lakers looking to maintain flexibility to make run at superstar next summer
The Lakers have shown that they are valuing their future cap space as they’ve yet to sign anyone to long-term contracts or extensions. The hope is that Luka Doncic signs an extension this summer and from there Los Angeles is reportedly looking to make a run at a superstar to pair with him next summer.
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more!
