2025-26 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

Myles Turner sounds like the center you’re looking for.Not a rebounder but certainly protects the rim and hits 3’s.Probably not that hard to get either.Still just 30 years old

 

i'm mostly on your team re: giannis, but i'll play devil's advocate and say that someone (i think svtzr) convinced me that you could trade for giannis without sacrificing all the depth.

it would involve losing reaves (and reaves agreeing to it), but reaves/vando and the picks gets it done, and you could basically operate over the cap, using various rights and exceptions to keep basically everyone else:

giannis 58
luka 50
lebron 25 (bird, could go higher or lower)
rui 16 (bird, could go higher or lower)
kennard 10 (non-bird raise)
ayton 8 (assuming opt-in)
hayes 7
laravia 6
smart 6
knecht 4
bronny 2
thiero 1

you'd have basically enough room under the apron to use the full mle in this situation. or if smart wants a raise, maybe you can split it between him thybulle or him and ellis (more likely?).

ayton/hayes
giannis/rui
lebron/thiero/knecht
luka/kennard
ellis/smart

you're certain to get at least one of the best vet mins as either a ring chasing old guy or a malik monk style career reboot, too.

i prefer keeping reaves and adding two impact players each at half giannis's salary slot, of course.

 

Well this is exactly what I'm talking about. OKC and the Spurs are great because they have elite top-end talent AND depth. Right now the depth/athleticism down the roster is the big difference between us and them, but the second LeBron leaves/materially declines there's a gulf in top-end talent as well. The Spurs have a 22 year old Wemby who is already better than Luka and two guards in their early 20s who will each probably be better than Austin sooner rather than later. The FO could do all of those things you said over multiple transaction cycles, but at the end of the day if its just Luka, Austin and a deep roster of athletic, two-way role players that's not going to be good enough. Keeping up with, or exceeding, their top-end talent is not less important than improving down the roster.

We're not in a great position here. Both OKC and the Spurs are better than us, younger than us, and have more assets to improve/maintain over the next few years. The way I see it, there are two paths. We go the patient route, as you described, and try to progressively build over multiple transaction cycles. Part of the route, which I don't think is discussed enough, is we probably will need to bring in another All-Caliber-ish guy to replace LeBron, or if we can't do that upgrade on Reaves like you said. Because Luka/Austin/role players is not good enough. Or, we go for the big swing now and hope that a Luka/Giannis pairing is so devastating that it allows us to get away with some lesser players down the roster. To be clear, I don't think either path is a great bet. I just don't think the Giannis path is any worse of a bet than the other path. Unfortunately, I think it's more likely than not that we don't win a championship in Luka's prime. Yes injuries/things happen so maybe one year someone on the Spurs or OKC is injured, but that stuff could just as easily happen to us. We already had this year's playoff run washed out by injury.

 

It sounds like we're mostly in agreement on all of this.

The thing for me is that I don't think the Giannis path is viable or even comparable to the patient pathway at all. To me, that would just be a braindead attempt to do what used to work for the Lakers in years past that would inevitably fail due to our abject failure up til now to even bother trying to build an elite roster on the margins for the other half of the winning equation and when the so called "superteam" of Luka, Giannis, LeBron and maybe Austin goes down in flames a la the Hindenburg Disaster, the Lakers will have no assets or pathways forward available to course correct and allow Luka to remain competitive for the remainder of his prime.

The only winning path for the Lakers right now is patience.

Frankly, the only superstar trade I'd personally be interested in seeing the Lakers pursuing over the next couple of years is a trade for Ant. Begrudgingly, he'd be the exact sort of Big Name Player that the Lakers would immediately benefit from in a big upgrade over Austin for the secondary playmaker position next to Luka that would drastically improve the roster's athleticism and likely defensive playmaking (I suspect Ant's decline in recent years on that front has a lot to do with him having to be the primary playmaker on the Wolves).

 

Not a terrible option and certainly a rather realistic one IMO, but right now I think the best case scenario for the Lakers is helping facilitate a Giannis trade to the Miami Heat and getting Kel'el Ware in the deal. Young enough to continue growing as a player, fits everything we need for both a Big playing next to Luka AND the floor spacing mandate that the Spurs have basically just issued to the rest of the League, and above all else is still on his rookie contract.

 

I do think Ant is worth keeping an eye on. We're probably at least a full season away from there being any "Ant is unhappy here" stuff, but yeah I mean a re-signed Austin + picks for Ant does make sense. I agree that his defensive "decline" is mostly him just not trying in the regular season because he has a big ballhandling burden now that Conley has aged out. I feel like Atlanta is going to be the second stop for him though. He's from Atlanta, went to Georgia, gets to play in the easier conference and would still be the #1 guy, face of the franchise. Atlanta was flirting with going all-in on Giannis, but doing it with Ant and pairing him with Jalen Johnson makes way more sense.

 

before we got luka, i thought ant was going to be the next big star to be a laker, tbh.

 

It's already pre-starting



Is there a KCP way of taking care of Ayton and Jax that lays the groundwork the way KCP did for the Bron arrival?

Hawks might have an advantage but have been inept since the 90s, outside of their Young and Millsap window.

He likes acting and being a showman. That's LA

 

Certainly would welcome Ware. If I’m Milwaukee though I would want a young talent like him in this trade

 

best path to edwards is re-signing reaves and having him play well while retaining all of our picks (and hitting on this year's, tbh).

 

Oh boy here we go kicking the can for a year or 2 to keep the power dry for Ant lol
If we trade our 3 picks we only get to 2 again in 2030

He would be great and possibly our best way to match/beat the top West teams. But yeah Atlanta makes more sense for him. I'd surely go East if I could and if he's from there even better. Also a good team, good young core and great fit for him.
I think LA would appeal him a lot but Luka would take too much shining from him to his liking, I guess. It would always be Luka's team

 

oh yeah, to be clear, i'm actually all for spending the picks this summer if we can get starting quality players with them. burn 'em all. let's go.

 

x2, our superstar is now in his prime, we need to maximize the window, not wait for another pipedream

 

ok
give it back to real MVP of your choice

 

There’s no way Ant Man is choosing Atlanta over L.A. wouldn’t happen never would happen. You can’t sale shoes in Atlanta.

He’s Hollywood. Lukas here. If the NBA wants Ant man in L.A. he’s coming to L.A.

I said he would come here. And there’s no Lukas team Ants team. Luka wasn’t drafted here he was traded here.

They would play together. If he ever left Minnesota it would be to play with Luka. See his reaction when we got Luka. He’s always liked Luka and admired Luka. He’s always liked L.A.


We could talk all we want about this player and that player. But Lukas getting a superstar this off season. Book it.

 

The most important player.

Victor Wembyanas agent Bouna Ndiaye called Rob Pelinka in the off season to ask what Kobe Bryant’s regimen was for training. He needed to get Wemby to where Kobe was and he saw similarities in the two players. Wemby was “7,6” but needed to work on power at the basket without putting on weight to keep his flexibility.

Kobe studied great white sharks. Victor trained with Monks.

This is huge Rob has a relationship with the agent. This is what we did with AD it’s what we did with LeBron. It’s why Rob is where he’s at. He has relationships with agents and people. Just like he did with Nico when we got Luka. He knows how to work the phone.

That’s what I care about. Now it can be just simple advice. But it’s big he’s in his ear. And he calls him for advice. And if there’s any admiring of Kobe that’s a big deal. Kobe got LeBron here. It can’t be underrated what his presence has on players coming here.

one thing I’ll say about Wemby is he’s different. So stay tuned but if there’s any team that has a chance at this superstar it’s the purple and gold.

 

It’s disgusting what the NBA did allowing the Blazers to sale to such a cheap owner Tom Dondon. Why would Jody Allen sale her team to a cheap horrible owner like him.? The fans are one thing but your employees who’ve worked for you. Why would the owners allow this and approve this? All he’s going to do is spend the minimum and reap the money from revenue sharing and then sale it and make a profit when the revenues go up. Straight buisness deal. He makes Donald Sterling look like Steve Ballmer.

Damn I feel for Portland. Well you can cross The Blazers off as one of Gianiss destination teams.

Who would play in that cheap team.?????

Will the checks clear?????

Dondon lays off entire buisness side of Trail Blazers.

Damn I feel for my girl Jenna.

No 2 way players traveling for playoffs.

No Massage therapist at team hotels.

players check out of Hotel at 12pm no late checkouts. Nothing like players being in the lobby at 12pm wondering where to go with a 7pm game start time. Regardless have you ever checked out a hotel at 12pm.???? It’s a pain in the a**.

No playoff shirts or towels. I mean you gotta have the experience and make it hostile for the opposing team.

The concessions must suck. Cheese and crackers.

Do they shut the Hot Water off after 30 minutes?? 15 minute showers.

Do they turn the lights off right after games????

lol.

 

Last April, he called Los Angeles Lakers general manager and president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka, who represented Kobe Bryant for much of his career, and scheduled a lunch.

The reason was simple.

"The way they think is different," Ndiaye told ESPN. "The way they play, the way they stretch themselves. Just their curiosity. How they study and watch things. They're both very creative on how to solve a problem."

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Wembanyama's problem to solve last spring, Ndiaye said, was how to be more physical on the court without bulking up. How to get stronger without losing the flexibility and athleticism that make his body so unique. How to move differently so he could impose his will and his length and his prodigious skill set inside the 3-point line, where his opponents usually choose a player 30 to 50 pounds heavier to rough him up.

"Basically he wanted to have a physical transformation so he can run forever and use his physical tools to get closer to the basket," Ndiaye said. "And then he wanted to be challenged."

Mentally, physically, spiritually. Challenged in every way a supremely conditioned athlete who already pushes himself harder than most humans can be challenged.

Pelinka listened while Ndiaye talked. He knew the type.

Bryant used to do that, too, he told him. One summer Bryant had become obsessed with studying how great white sharks hunt and attack their prey. So it became Pelinka's job to find him the best place in the world to do that -- which is apparently Guadalupe, an island 150 miles off the coast of Baja, Mexico, where you can go cage diving in the crystal-clear waters.

Bryant would later write in The Players' Tribune in 2017 that his study of great whites helped him defend Allen Iverson.

Then there was Bryant's obsession with the Sistine Chapel. Pelinka arranged for him to travel there one summer for a private tour guided by an art historian.

Bryant was fascinated by how Michelangelo had painted a three-dimensional masterpiece while lying on scaffolding in a space without abundant natural light, Pelinka told Ndiaye.

The lesson was not about the techniques used but the vision and perseverance to create something extraordinary under impossible conditions.

Ndiaye nodded along as Pelinka recounted these stories, both men delighting in the intellectual curiosity each of their star clients brought to
their craft.

"I wanted to understand how Kobe did things," Ndiaye told ESPN. "So that we could learn from him. Victor is not like anybody else. We have to be creative to build programs that are unique to him."

Wembanyama to Lakers confirmed ?

 

In other news Steve Springer the executive vice president of basketball operations with the Timberwolves was interviewed for the same job with the Lakers and turned it down. All Lakers brass was there.