The Lakers have spent the summer trying to shore up a roster that already looks better than it did a few weeks ago, but the frontcourt picture still feels unfinished. With training camp approaching, Los Angeles is weighing a few different ways to add big-man help after missing out on Jonathan Kuminga, and one name now standing out is a familiar one to Luka Doncic.
Dwight Powell has emerged as a realistic free-agent fit. Khobi Price of the California Post pointed out that the market has thinned even more after the Heat signed Nick Richards to a veteran’s minimum deal, and he identified Powell as the most significant remaining option for the Lakers. As Price wrote:
“After the Heat picked up Nick Richards on a veteran’s minimum contract on Thursday, the list of free- agent big men became even shorter and more bleak. The most significant option for the Lakers could be Dwight Powell, the 6-10, 35-year-old big man who was teammates with Doncic for 6-and-a-half seasons in Dallas. Notably, Powell has played the most games as a teammate alongside Doncic (389) among the 98 players Doncic has played alongside in his eight-year NBA career.”
That connection matters. Powell spent 6-and-a-half seasons with Doncic in Dallas, and that kind of familiarity is hard to ignore when a team is trying to plug holes quickly. The Lakers have been focused on finding starting-caliber wings, but they’ve also been linked to backup centers, and the shortage of quality options has made the search messy.
Powell’s case is pretty straightforward: he brings experience, rebounding, and the kind of veteran steadiness that can make sense in a rotation that still needs reinforcement. Last season, he played in 63 games and averaged 3.3 points and 4.1 rebounds while shooting 64.4% from the field. He’s not a spacing big, but he can work the glass.
There’s also a financial angle. Spotrac lists the Lakers with $8.1 million in cap space before they hit the first apron hard cap, which means a minimum deal for Powell is at least possible.
The problem is roster space. Los Angeles already has 16 players, so signing someone else would likely require a move first.
If the Lakers decide free agency isn’t the answer, trade possibilities are there - just not many of them. Price noted that Drew Eubanks, Bismack Biyombo, and Mason Plumlee are among the other free-agent backup options, but he also laid out two names who could come via trade after the Kuminga miss. As he put it:
“These limitations, in addition to a big man market that has a high demand but a low supply of quality options, are why the Lakers don’t have many trade options for big man depth. But if they decided to go that route, two potential targets would be Bucks center Jericho Sims and Bulls big man Jalen Smith.”
Smith has already been floated as a Lakers target, though there has been no formal report confirming interest. At 26, he brings athleticism and floor-spacing versatility, along with averages of 10.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 0.8 blocks per game on 48.3% shooting from the field and 37.3% from three-point range. On paper, that makes him the more appealing swing.
Sims is the other possibility. The 6-foot-10, 27-year-old doesn’t offer Smith’s shooting, but he has the athletic profile to fill a different need, and Price suggested he could work as a possible Jaxson Hayes replacement.
Last season, Sims appeared in 67 games and averaged 5.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists while shooting 78.4% from the field. His defensive impact was limited, but he has the tools to be a useful rim protector off the bench.
Still, the path forward isn’t clean. Smith may be the better target, but Chicago may be less willing to move him.
Sims may be easier to get, but he may not fit the Lakers’ needs as well. That leaves Los Angeles stuck between thin free-agent choices and trade ideas that may be hard to pull off without creating cap and roster room first.
For now, the most realistic outcome may be waiting until the February trade deadline to make the next move.
In Other News...
Bulls Linked To Intriguing Role In Proposed Lakers Mavs Trade
The Lakers search for frontcourt help has already been nudged in a different direction after Jonathan Kuminga opted for Minnesota, and that has kept attention on other ways to reshape the roster. One idea floating around league circles comes from NBA insider Jake Weinbach, who laid out a three-team framework with Los Angeles landing P.J. Washington from Dallas, a player whose size and versatility would fit a need the Lakers have been trying to address.
In Weinbachs proposal, the Lakers would send Jaden Hardy, Adou Thiero and future draft pick swaps to the Mavericks, while Chicago would step in as the third team and take Jake LaRavia. It is an interesting setup because the Bulls involvement could help make the deal workable for both sides, but the real question for the Lakers is whether the price and the moving parts line up with their urgency to keep adding usable rotation pieces. [Read more 🡒]
Lakers Miss On Jonathan Kuminga For A Reason Fans Will Hate
Jonathan Kumingas free-agency choice left the Lakers searching for an answer they could not quite sell. He signed a two-year, $12 million deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves that includes a player option, turning down interest from Los Angeles, Chicago and Portland after weighing a longer Lakers offer that would have put him in a starting role.
For the Lakers, the frustrating part is not just losing out on a young, talented wing. Kumingas agent, Aaron Turner, said the decision came down to comfort and belief in the organization, with Minnesota presenting the kind of alignment he wanted across ownership, the front office, the coach and the franchise player. Los Angeles could offer opportunity, but in the end the Timberwolves offered something harder to package: a developmental setting and a sense of fit he trusted. [Read more 🡒]
Clippers Face A Risky Lakers Decision With Veteran Big Man
Brook Lopez is the kind of veteran big man who can still change the shape of a roster, which is why any idea involving him tends to draw immediate attention. In the speculative trade scenario floating around, the Lakers would land Lopez while sending out Jaden Hardy and a 2031 second-round pick, a modest price on paper for a player whose value comes from spacing, rim protection and the sort of steady presence that can fit cleanly next to Luka Doncic.
For the Lakers, the appeal is obvious: Lopez would bring a different look to the frontcourt and give Doncic another dependable option in the half court. For the Clippers, though, the decision would be riskier, since moving a veteran center with that skill set is never just about the return package, it is also about what gets left behind in the middle of the rotation and whether the front office is comfortable reshaping that position again. [Read more 🡒]