This will be a very important offseason for the Los Angeles Lakers as they look to build the ideal roster around Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves. Rob Pelinka and the rest of the front office will be working all summer, using all potential options to improve this team and contend for the NBA Championship next season.
Whether it is through free agency, the NBA Draft or trades, the Lakers must identify and acquire the right pieces to take this team to the next level and ESPN’s Bobby Marks believes the franchise will be very aggressive in doing so.
In an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up, Marks said he expects the team to be extremely aggressive this offseason, using their expiring contracts to acquire a center and other depth pieces, while also eyeing an extension for Doncic:
“I expect them to be extremely aggressive this offseason, especially with LeBron likely going into, you know, he’s got one year left on his contract. I think there’s three things here. You’ve gotta take advantage of the $60 million in expiring contracts, when you’re looking at certainly players like Gabe Vincent and Rui Hachimura. The second thing is, they showed their hand at the trade deadline when they made that Mark Williams trade that wound up failing him on his physical. They are going to go out and get a center this offseason, we’ll see how that goes, you’ve got one first-round pick to do that. And then the third thing is, keep an eye on Aug. 2 that is when Luka is eligible to sign that extension. So you’re trying to build for the now, but I think you also have to have an eye for the future when eventually LeBron does retire here.”
Hachimura, Vincent and Maxi Kleber combine for around $41 million in expiring contracts. Dorian Finney-Smith would also be an expiring should he opt-in to the final year of his deal at $15.3 million and Jarred Vanderbilt could also be included in a potential trade, though he has potentially three more guaranteed years on his deal. A center remains a top priority for Pelinka and the Lakers, though the team will likely also be eyeing to improve perimeter defense and 3-point shooters.
Signing Luka Doncic to a long-term extension will also be of the highest priority to the Lakers’ front office, but there are multiple different possibilities of that deal depending on what Luka wants to do. What is clear is that there is a lot on the plate of Pelinka and the front office this summer and all eyes will be watching to see what they do.
Former Lakers wing Danny Green doesn’t believe they can win with LeBron James and Luka Doncic
The Lakers believe that they can compete for a championship if they build the right team around Luka Doncic and LeBron James, but former purple and gold player Danny Green isn’t so sure.
Green recently spoke about the Lakers’ superstar duo saying that while they’re explosive offensively, they lack a lot on defense and he just doesn’t see them winning a championship with those two as their core.
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