The Lakers’ search for a wing to fill the void left by LeBron James has taken another turn, and Jonathan Kuminga may no longer be the cleanest path to a solution.
Los Angeles had been linked to the former Warriors forward for weeks, with mutual interest between the sides. As NBA reporter Evan Sidery wrote, “There is mutual free agent interest between Jonathan Kuminga and the Lakers, per Jovan Buha. Los Angeles continues to work behind the scenes to secure Kuminga’s commitment as their new wing addition,”
That pursuit, though, never got all the way across the finish line. By Monday morning, the Lakers had moved in a different direction and agreed to a one-year, $3.3 million deal with Matisse Thybulle.
“Free agent forward Matisse Thybulle has agreed on a one-year, $3.3 million deal to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers, sources told ESPN. Thybulle, a two-time All-Defensive team member, spoke with JJ Redick and Luka Doncic about the Lakers' desire to sign him and his role during free agency and chose the opportunity in an effort to beef up the team's wing defense,” ESPN’s Shams Charania wrote.
That move tells you where the Lakers’ priorities are right now. With momentum slowing on Kuminga, the team chose to address perimeter defense immediately instead of waiting on a longer negotiation. Dan Woike of The Athletic noted that the Lakers had been tracking Kuminga since late June, but “it appears that momentum has stalled with the sides far apart on terms and L.A. not overly motivated to push significant draft capital into sign-and-trade scenarios,”
Kuminga, who won an NBA championship during his time with Golden State, had looked like the player Los Angeles was targeting most aggressively. But after adding multiple wings this offseason, the Lakers may be shifting away from a prolonged chase and toward quicker roster fixes.
For now, the signs point to a team that isn’t eager to sit around and wait on another drawn-out Kuminga process.
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