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

i think the way the journalists have interpreted this is either lazy or intended to rile people up. the hypothetical sk puts forth above rests fully on the assumption that our general manager is an idiot. like, of course if someone's offering you a starting caliber player on a reasonable contract who fits well with your team in exchange for expirings and a first, you're going to take it.

and i'll keep beating this drum: last year at this time, people were mad about us not wanting to pay the price for jerami grant, and now portland couldn't sell him with a first attached. you don't want to the team to have bought high there. disastrous.

 

Same stuff with the "26 and 27 plan" put out there from "sources" at the very start of free agency this summer had some calling for Pelinka's head even more urgently than in the past as opposed to letting the 2nd day even play out, including us being doomed because DFS was let walk and Rob did him just plain evil bad mouthing him to other GMs.

 

Trevor Lane says his Lakers sources are saying, that there isn't some grand 2027 cap space plan at all. And that the Lakers are focused on winning right now with Luka and Lebron.

 

Sounds like something might be going on there.

 

I think they ALWAYS look forward and don't want to make stupid moves that give them a short for now that stops them from a strong move in the future. They will make a move, like the Luka move but they are not taking someone else's stupid move just to make a move.

 

Stop Gap move:

Lakers get: Monk and Carter

Kings get: Rui and Knecht

Why for Lakers?

• Monk is a microwave 6th man, who averages 16 and 5 last season! That's 6MOY numbers.
• Unlike Rui, Monk doesn't mind coming off the bench.
• Lakers have to dip into their sacred 2027 cap space, but I don't think it really applies here, since Rui would command a 3-4 year contract after this season anyway, for similar annual money to what is owed to Monk, only Monk would be owed for only 2 more years after this one. So from a financial standpoint, I really don't think that would hold the deal up.
• Carter is like a 1-2 version of Thierro, but more NBA ready, He is 6-3, with a 6-9 wing span, and rebounds liek a power forward. He averaged 9 rebounds per game his last season at Providence. He is super quick and athletic, posted high combine numbers in these areas. His shot is a little slow of a release, but he shot soemthing liek 37% at Prov, and on high volume. Lakers were interested in him in the draft, but SAC snatched him up at #13. He also has an NBA pedigree, his dad is Anthony Carter. Lakers stock piling defenders, but this guy might have the greatest trac record in terms of shooting over Vando, Thierro, Manon, and he might end up being a better shotoer than Smart.
• Lakers love familiarity. They love bringing back former Lakers, and players who they have had interested in either in the draft, or in scouting otherwise. Monk was productive in his one season here, and earned hismelf a deal. Fans loved him. I think he had a 40 piece or soemthign on the last game if the season or something like that. It wont be hard to sell this to the casual Lakers fan. Lakers love bringing back old players. There are aton of players who came back. Think AC Green, Byron Scott, DFish, Ariza, Dwight, Dlo. Even scrubs like Bazemore and Wes Johnson. Even coaches lol. As mentioned, Lakers had Carter in for a workout and wete highly interested in him. They desperatly needed speed and athelticism in the backcourt, and they still do. These are the types of players they try to buy low on later. Think Shroeder, Bamba, Lonnie Walker, Reddish, etc.
• Rui and DK seem on the way out anyway. This is a no-brainer, really.
• They don't have to give up significant assets in this deal! No picks. Pelinka saves them for potential home run trade.

Why for Kings?

• They are the Kings.
• Supposedly they are trying to save money. They get out of Monk's deal. They may or may not want to re-sign Rui, who knows?
• Backcourt logjam. They supposedly want to sign WB too, but they have LaVine, Shroeder, DeRozen, Ellis, the kid the yjust drafted, and other already.
• Honestly, who knows what they are doing. But Monk might be too expensive for them, and they are jsut not doing right by the Carter kid. Maynbe they dont like him, idk. But he would complement our unathletic backcourt players well.
• Sometimes fresh starts could really uplift some players: DK could break out on a trash team. Max touches and minimal distractions.
• His name isnt Damitus Knechtisvitus, but he could be marketed as sort of a domestic Peja type player, who was a perfect complement to CWebb. So Sabonis is the CWebb in this scenario. I think the kid could really excel in Sac.

 

No no no no to R.J. Barrett.

 

The Lakers aren’t doing that.

what I can see the Lakers is doing a trade for OG a wing who solves the perimeter defense.Anthony Edwards.

Low key there is a little all in this season due to No Tatum. It smells like the bubble a little bit.

RJ does nothing empty stats scorer kind of like Rui at least with Rui he can play kind of defense.

the Lakers want to be positioned for Gianiss to do an Anthony Davis let me teach you trade me cause I’m only signing there.

it’s tampering with out tampering I don’t need to go Magic Winking to Paul George on Jimmy Kimmel to tell you.

but we can tamper through the media saying our number one priority is flexibility for 2026 and the flexibility to be able to sign free agents.

we aren’t saying the players. But those players know who they are.

The Lakers don’t f*** around.

Shaq 96

Lebron 18

Davis 19

this isn’t a team talking to talk.

 

The Shaq rumblings were coming in 95 and that came from my mom who was like your boy is coming to the Lakers Shaq. Nobody in L.A. actually thought it would happen. Not even Shaq but Jerry worked the agent.

 

So Like this team is very good at working agents just talking to them the relationships.

Rob who was an agent. They know what they’re doing.

Jokic through channels not taking the extension not endorsing the roster.

Gianiss saying we will see.

I don’t know what they’re cooking. Is it a Big 3 I don’t know.

but the Lakers plan and are strategic. They got Kobe Shaq LeBron AD Kobe Pau Magic Kareem they just do these things.

They are going to keep that flexibility.

after Luol Deng and Mozgoff that will never happen to this organization again. And they assured Luka that they will compete for championships.