Perhaps the biggest domino for the Los Angeles Lakers this offseason is the status of LeBron James, who is an unrestricted free agent for the first time in a while.
If James returns to the Lakers then they may not have much cap space to work with depending on how much he agrees to sign for. On the other hand, if he leaves then the roster could look much different than it did a year ago.
James returning to the Lakers remains the most likely scenario though and his good friend and former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Kevin Love could be joining him, per Marc J. Spears of ESPN:
"I'm hearing that [LeBron's] likely coming back [to the Lakers]. … Kevin Love could likely be joining the Lakers too."@MarcJSpears gives some insight on what could be next for LeBron 🏀 pic.twitter.com/EV1Qwqiixf
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 17, 2026
The Lakers have always valued having veteran experience on their bench, especially when filling out the end of their roster. Love would serve that role as the 37-year-old isn’t the player he once was but is still a quality veteran and mentor to players around the league.
Love played in 35 games (five starts) for the Utah Jazz last season and still averaged 6.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 37.3% from 3-point ranges in 16.6 minutes per contest.
It’s no secret that the Lakers need to address the center position this offseason and while Love would do that on paper, he cannot be counted on to play significant minutes in his 19th season in the NBA.
The Lakers have been putting an emphasis on player development in recent years due to the constrictions of the new CBA. Bringing in a player like Love would contradict that strategy though, so if it happens it likely would only be to appease James and get him to sign for a reasonable number to return to the team for the 2026-27 season.
Luka Doncic discusses importance of Lakers’ offseason
It’s no secret how big this offseason is for the Lakers as they look to build a championship contender around Luka Doncic. In fact, even Doncic himself recently discussed just how important this summer is for the Lakers. He also added that he felt 2025-26 was a bad season for the team considering they did not win the title.
While that may be a bit harsh, moves definitely need to be made to improve this summer.
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