The Lakers have already checked one box on the free-agent market, and now they may be circling another familiar name if their bigger wing target doesn’t come through.
Los Angeles signed former Golden State Warriors center Kevon Looney to a one-year deal on Tuesday, adding a proven second-unit big to the mix. That move gives Walker Kessler a dependable backup for at least one season, but the Lakers are still looking for help on the perimeter and continue to have interest in former Warriors lottery pick Jonathan Kuminga.
If Kuminga signs elsewhere, Lakers insider Jovan Buha believes the team could pivot to another former Western Conference defender with a strong résumé: Matisse Thybulle.
“I think Matisse Thybulle is one of the best perimeter defenders in the league,” Buha said Monday. While discussing the Lakers' most realistic wing targets. “He’s not as good as he was a few years ago, but still really good.”
Thybulle earned two NBA All-Defensive second-team selections during his 3.5 seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers, and the case for him starts on that end of the floor. The Washington product made his name with constant activity, quick hands, and the kind of off-ball awareness that can turn a possession sideways in a hurry. He also brought real on-ball pressure, with a career defensive rating of 108.5 and 1.4 steals per game across 245 games with the 76ers.
The offense has never matched the defense, and Buha pointed out that Thybulle hasn’t been quite as disruptive since leaving Philadelphia in 2023. Even so, he remains the sort of fallback wing option the Lakers could keep in reserve if the Kuminga path closes.
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