What say you?<\/p>\n
Joining me at our virtual roundtable are Los Angeles Times reporters Broderick Turner and columnists Bill Plaschke and Mirjam Swanson. With an assist from our assistant editor Dan Loumena, we examine the upcoming offseason.<\/p>\n
The biggest question facing the Lakers: Re-sign LeBron James, let him walk as a free agent or hope he retires?<\/p>\n
Nguyen: LeBron deciding to retire would definitely make things simpler for the Lakers, but nothing about this franchise can be simple. With how the season ended and the way he played, it feels unlikely that he would walk away at this point. It\u2019ll come down to the money. This free agency class is not very strong. A soon-to-be 42-year-old could be the best of the bunch. But if the Lakers are on the hook for something close to what James made last year, building out the rest of the roster seems untenable. At the right price, he still feels like a player who could help the Lakers.<\/p>\n
Plaschke: There is no \u201cright price\u201d for the Lakers and LeBron. He\u2019s still one of the best players in the game, and he\u2019ll demand to be paid like it, but the Lakers aren\u2019t going to want to pony up. Not for a third option. Not for a 42-year-old consistent injury threat. And not for a guy who, if they give him what he wants, they\u2019ll have no chance to begin building what they want, which is a championship. Bring back LeBron James? Pass.<\/p>\n
Swanson: There absolutely is a right price \u2014 for the Lakers. Will that be the right price for LeBron? What if a low-low price of $20 million-ish would do it? Higher than the mid-level but far less than he\u2019s used to? I think there\u2019s a world where the Lakers can make a $20-million to 30-million pay cut make sense for LeBron \u2014 and I think he\u2019s waiting to see if they can do it.<\/p>\n
LeBron is such a Rorschach test because everyone hears what he says and so many of us perceive it differently. What I heard when he spoke about his future on the recent \u201cMind the Game\u201d podcast was A) not someone who\u2019s lost his love for the game, B) someone who really enjoyed last season\u2019s Lakers team, C) someone who\u2019s L.A.-lifestyle-loving family is going to have a lot of sway in this latest Decision and D) someone who was letting it be known that he isn\u2019t making the call until \u201clate-June into August,\u201d by which time the music will have all but stopped on the NBA\u2019s annual musical chairs number.<\/p>\n
I take that to mean that LeBron is going to sit back and see what the Lakers do with the money they\u2019re going to be reallocating to other players and whether it brings them closer to contention. If they do that, I think he comes back for another hurrah for substantially less \u2014 and they should want him! He\u2019s not only one of (if not the) best players of all time. He was still a massively productive player at 40 and 41. He led the Lakers to a playoff series victory against Houston and was their most dependable player on the court for much of the Oklahoma City series in which they were otherwise completely overmatched.<\/p>\n
Turner: Let\u2019s be clear first: LeBron is one of the best free agents in a market that is not strong this offseason. That, alone, puts the Lakers in a precarious situation, because they know it\u2019s a weak market and so do James and his representatives. James\u2019 asking price and what the Lakers are willing to pay him will be the test for both sides. It\u2019s called negotiations and James and his people already are letting the media machine suggest James wants the same $52.3 million he earned last season again. Or if not, James, rightfully, wants to know how the Lakers will build their team if he does take a pay cut. He proved his worth again in the playoffs, leading the Lakers past the Houston Rockets with Doncic out and Reaves playing in just two of those games. The Lakers will have to pay The Man.<\/p>\n
Austin Reaves is expected to opt out of his contract to enter unrestricted free agency. The Lakers can bring him back for up to five years and $241 million. Other teams can sign him for up to four years and $178 million. What should the Lakers do? <\/p>\n
![\"Austin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1780411515_783_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Austin Reaves controls the ball during the first half of Game 6 against Houston.<\/p>\n
(Ashley Landis \/ AP)<\/p>\n
Plaschke: Bring back AR. He got batted around a bit in the playoffs, but he was trying to return too soon from his oblique injury. Judge him by his entire body of work, which meshes perfectly with Luka\u2019s body of work. Give AR what he wants. Bring him back.<\/p>\n
Swanson: Unless the Brooklyn Nets or Atlanta Hawks or Memphis Grizzlies want to massively overpay, Austin is coming back. He loves L.A. and L.A. loves him back. But I don\u2019t think anyone thinks Austin is going to get $240 million from the Lakers, it\u2019s more likely going to be a five-year, $200-million deal \u2014 that extra year the Lakers can offer being the sweetener in any potential bidding war.<\/p>\n
And the Lakers shouldn\u2019t overpay him, because they need to make sure he\u2019s on a tradeable contract \u2014 in case they can\u2019t figure out how to overcome Austin\u2019s and Luka\u2019s redundancies as defensively suspect shot-makers. Or if his toughness doesn\u2019t override his unfortunate susceptibility to injury. Or if uneven playoff performances in the future put a lid on the Lakers\u2019 postseason potential. You know, just in case.<\/p>\n
Turner: He wants to return and the Lakers want him back. At what price is the question. Reaves earned $13.9 million last season and has a player option for next season at $14.8 million. He\u2019s going to bet on himself and decline that option for a bigger payday. At the very least, Reaves will earn $40 million or more per season. The Lakers know a few teams have their eyes on Reaves. Reaves and his representatives know they can get up to five years and $241 million from the Lakers, and that\u2019s what they want.<\/p>\n
If the Lakers and LeBron do not come to an agreement, what other options do they have via trade or trying to sign a star?<\/p>\n
Nguyen: The Lakers are trying to remodel the roster to fit around Luka Doncic, which means they need shooting, defense and a perfect pick-and-roll partner. Despite lingering hamstring injuries, Denver\u2019s Peyton Watson, who is a restricted free agent, was an intriguing name, especially with a potential homecoming for the former UCLA Bruin. Detroit\u2019s Jalen Duren is a restricted free agent and coming off an underwhelming postseason run, which could complicate negotiations for the third-team All-NBA player. If Cleveland is willing to part with one of their big men after getting swept out of the Eastern Conference finals, maybe the Lakers could lurk around for a big trade. Come draft night, the Lakers have three first-round picks available to trade: 2026, 2031 and 2033.<\/p>\n
Swanson: The Lakers need to target stars in their roles. Most of those guys Thuc Nhi mentioned would be good \u2014 though Duren\u2019s playoff nosedive would make me not want him at his going price. For the Lakers, it\u2019s: Shooters wanted, defenders wanted, ATHLETES wanted. Think the New Orleans Pelicans\u2019 Trey Murphy or maybe Herb Jones. And bring back Rui Hachimura, a big-bodied shooter who we trust in the clutch. Build Luka a suitable army, as much as possible, with the cap space and draft picks they\u2019ve been saving for this offseason.<\/p>\n
Turner: Here\u2019s the thing: The Lakers can re-sign LeBron and AR and still use the mid-level exception that will be about $15 million to sign a free agent. Denver\u2019s Peyton Watson is a name that has been attached to the Lakers. The problem is he is a restricted free agent and the Nuggets can match any offer he receives. Also, if the Lakers make him an offer, the Nuggets have 48 hours to make a decision. During that waiting period, the Lakers would have cap space tied up and could lose out on other free agents. But word around the NBA is that the Nuggets will shed some salaries so they can pay Watson because they need young, athletic wings.<\/p>\n
Then there\u2019s the Deandre Ayton situation. Can the Lakers upgrade at center?<\/p>\n
![\"Deandre](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1780411516_424_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Deandre Ayton defends against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort during the playoffs.<\/p>\n
(Kyle Phillips \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n
Nguyen: It feels likely that Deandre Ayton will be back on his player option. It\u2019ll be hard for him to get anything better on the open market. But the Lakers definitely need more out of that position. If he comes back with Luka and Austin, \u201crun it back\u201d is starting to give \u201crunning in circles\u201d while Oklahoma City and San Antonio run circles around everyone else in the West.<\/p>\n
Plaschke: DA is going to take the Lakers\u2019 money, so this feels like a moot point. A better question is, how can they get rid of him once he\u2019s back? His motor doesn\u2019t run at 100% all the time, and at this level, that is inexcusable.<\/p>\n
Swanson: Yeah, DA proved he is who we all thought he was: A great talent with wavering focus. But remember, he\u2019s not taking very much of the Lakers\u2019 money; dude is on an $8-million contract. Together he and [Jaxson] Hayes make close to $13 million. Considered the price tag, the Lakers actually got a lot of bang for their buck.<\/p>\n
Now, can either of those guys stop Wemby? Of course not. Can anyone on the planet, though? Uh, no. So, sure, the Lakers could spend big to upgrade at center, but it wouldn\u2019t make much of a difference. They\u2019d be better served to save money in the post \u2014 and potentially on LeBron \u2014 and spend it on wing defenders and shooters, which is where they can hope to counteract the top teams.<\/p>\n
Turner: DA underperformed most of the season and was even less impressive in the playoffs against OKC. Teams are not lining up to get him, so he\u2019ll probably pick up his player option of $8.1 million next season. Portland center Robert Williams is an unrestricted free agent that, when healthy, is an upgrade if the Lakers look his way. He earned $13.3 million last season and the Lakers could use the mid-level exception to entice him. He\u2019s a really good defender and the sort of lob threat that Doncic loves to have on his team.<\/p>\n
Favorite thing I ate this week ![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1780411516_922_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
A Vietnamese bar spread: Salt and pepper chicken (top left), salt and pepper tofu (bottom left), baby clams with shrimp chips and sesame crackers (center), Vietnamese BBQ pork skewers (top right) and mango salad (bottom right).<\/p>\n
(Thuc Nhi Nguyen \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n
When I was growing up, my parents had an open door policy. Family members dropped by basically unannounced on random weekdays after work or weekend afternoons to sit around our table, share a few drinks and snack on some bites. In Vietnamese, we call it \u201cnh\u1eadu.\u201d<\/p>\n
It means \u201cto go drinking,\u201d but just as important as the cold beer is the spread of snacks that kept my uncles and aunts drinking, laughing and hanging out for hours together.<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t need a reason to nh\u1eadu. You just need friends, food and beer. While my friends helped stock the fridge with drinks this week, I shared some of my Vietnamese favorites. We grazed on salt and pepper chicken, salt and pepper tofu, baby clams with shrimp chips and sesame crackers, BBQ pork skewers and mango salad. It was just like Vietnam except without the oppressive humidity.<\/p>\n
In case you missed it<\/p>\n
Luka Doncic invests in purchase of Italian basketball team with eye on NBA Europe<\/a><\/p>\n Shaikin: For Dodgers, getting to playoffs is not good enough for Mark Walter. For Lakers?<\/a><\/p>\n Lakers layoffs part of sweeping changes to business operations<\/a><\/p>\n Swanson: NBA\u2019s anti-tanking draft reform might be great for Lakers but is bad for basketball<\/a><\/p>\n Lakers hire former Pelicans executive Rohan Ramadas amid front office expansion<\/a><\/p>\n Firing Jason Kidd removes the last reminder of the Luka Doncic trade from Dallas<\/a><\/p>\n A new board game mocks Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for \u2018foul baiting.\u2019 He wants it destroyed<\/a><\/p>\n \u2018Bonkers\u2019 bribery case raises questions about why NBA star Terry Rozier would allegedly risk millions by participating<\/a><\/p>\n Until next time…<\/p>\n As always, pass along your thoughts to me at thucnhi.nguyen@latimes.com<\/a>, and please consider subscribing<\/a> if you like our work!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome back to The Times\u2019 Lakers newsletter, where we\u2019re calling in reinforcements for the home stretch of the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":710554,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[64,63,235078,235080,85592,7225,2873,10213,590,235081,16895,15624,7820,85,235079,3018,6618,187558,28561,14850],"class_list":["post-710553","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-big-trade-move","tag-guys","tag-howard","tag-jerami-grant","tag-lakers","tag-los-angeles-times","tag-nba","tag-next-month","tag-pandemic","tag-player","tag-players","tag-sports","tag-talen-horton","tag-team","tag-time","tag-trade-season","tag-tucker","tag-week"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710553","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=710553"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710553\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/710554"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=710553"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=710553"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=710553"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}