The Lakers will have the assets required to make a big move in the offseason.
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The Los Angeles Lakers’ decision to rescind the Mark Williams trade has left them without a starting-caliber big man for the rest of this season, but it has also put them in a position to pursue a big name in the offseason. Here is a look at some of the assets that the Lakers will have at their disposal after this season.
– 2031 first-round pick
– 2025 and 2032 second-round picks
– Pick swaps in 2026, 2028, 2030, 2032
– Dalton Knecht
– $40 million in expiring contracts of Rui Hachimura, Maxi Kleber, and Gabe Vincent
Depending on how confident you are about Luka Doncic’s body breaking down by 2030, that 2031 Lakers pick could prove to be quite valuable. The Dallas Mavericks don’t seem to believe the Slovenian is going to be great four to five years down the line and if they are right, that could well be a high lottery pick. The same logic applies when talking about the last two pick swaps, especially the one in 2032.
As for the players, the Lakers would be hoping that Dalton Knecht rediscovers his early-season form to bump up his value. The 23-year-old rookie is averaging 9.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.3 steals, and 0.1 blocks per game in 2024-25.
Knecht shot 42.9% from beyond the arc in the first 20 games of his NBA career but has connected on just 28.2% of his shots in the 28 games that followed. Considering he doesn’t offer much on the court outside of his shooting, his stock isn’t all too high at the moment. The Lakers need him to catch fire from beyond the arc not just to increase his trade value, but also to help them win this season.
Someone on the Lakers who has not been struggling with their shot is Rui Hachimura. Hachimura is averaging 13.0 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game this season while shooting 50.7% from the field and 42.7% from beyond the arc. He is set to earn $18.2 million next season and will have value on the market.
While Knecht has struggled with his shot as the season has gone by, Gabe Vincent has gone the opposite route. Vincent has shot 40.4% from beyond the arc since December and is finally performing the way the Lakers expected him to when they gave him a three-year, $33 million deal in 2023. He’ll make $11.5 million in 2025-26 and like Hachimura, does have value as a trade asset.
Lastly, we get to Maxi Kleber who is the least valuable player of this lot. Kleber is past his best at this point but the fact that he’ll be a free agent after making $11 million next season would mean teams wouldn’t be too hesitant to take him on if there is a need to match salaries.
While all these assets might not be enough to land a superstar, you can certainly get a star or a promising young player. Considering the Lakers are keeping one eye on the future after acquiring Doncic, you’d think they’d look to bring in a younger player.
The Lakers have reportedly been interested in Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler for a while now and could go after him again in the offseason. With all those expiring contracts, they can also target someone like Brooklyn Nets big man Nic Claxton.
It will be very interesting to see who the Lakers eventually end up going after. The failed Williams trade showed that they would be willing to give up a lot of their assets for the right player and they will have a few options in the summer.