![\"Lakers](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/GettyImages-2256335367-e1769594149195.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Lakers’ Kobe Bufkin during his 10-day stint in the NBA against his former team, the Atlanta Hawks<\/p>\n
Former Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> guard Kobe Bufkin<\/a> has been waived by the New Orleans Pelicans<\/a> ahead of the 2026-27 NBA season.<\/p>\n Bufkin was on a non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 contract<\/a> with the Pelicans but faced an uphill battle to secure the team\u2019s final roster spot.<\/p>\n The 23-year-old previously described<\/a> his time with New Orleans as \u201cpretty solid,\u201d but ultimately, his performances were not enough to earn him a place on the regular-season roster.<\/p>\n Now, Bufkin, the No. 15 overall pick in the 2023 NBA<\/a> Draft, finds himself facing an uncertain future with the new season just days away.<\/p>\n Lakers Could Be in Line for Unexpected Reunion With Kobe Bufkin<\/p>\n Like many players who find themselves waived ahead of the regular season, Bufkin could explore opportunities overseas for the first time in his career.<\/p>\n Still only 23, his impressive G League production could make him an attractive option for international teams, potentially opening the door to a lucrative contract.<\/p>\n However, Bufkin may prefer to remain in the United States and continue pushing for another NBA opportunity.<\/p>\n One possibility would be joining the Pelicans\u2019 G League affiliate, the Birmingham Squadron, although the organization would first need to acquire his returning player rights.<\/p>\n Those rights remain<\/a> with the Lakers\u2019 newly relocated G League affiliate in Coachella Valley, as Bufkin last played for South Bay at the developmental level.<\/p>\n That creates an intriguing, albeit unlikely, possibility of Bufkin reuniting with the Lakers organization and returning to the G League in Coachella Valley.<\/p>\n However, with no clear pathway to Los Angeles\u2019 NBA roster, the former first-round pick may prefer to explore opportunities elsewhere.<\/p>\n Bufkin also remains eligible for a two-way contract. While such an opportunity may not materialize immediately following his release, another productive G League campaign could put him firmly back on the radar of NBA teams.<\/p>\n Bufkin\u2019s Impressive G League Production Could Attract NBA Interest<\/p>\n Grant Afseth of RG.org<\/a> recently cited an NBA scout who described Bufkin as \u201can enticing player for a team to take a chance on,\u201d regardless of whether he made the Pelicans\u2019 roster.<\/p>\n The scout highlighted Bufkin\u2019s limited opportunities to establish himself at the NBA level, pointing to his impressive G League production as evidence of his potential.<\/p>\n Bufkin emerged as one of the G League\u2019s standout guards during his time with the Lakers\u2019 affiliate, South Bay, last season.<\/p>\n Across 24 appearances in 2025-26, he averaged<\/a> 24.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.2 steals while shooting an impressive 50.8% from the field and 42.3% from three-point range on seven attempts per game.<\/p>\n Those performances earned him a standard NBA contract<\/a> with the Lakers to finish the regular season, although Los Angeles waived him ahead of the playoffs to make room for Nick Smith<\/a> Jr.<\/p>\n Bufkin further strengthened his case for another NBA opportunity with an impressive 2026 Summer League campaign for New Orleans.<\/p>\n Across three appearances, he averaged<\/a> 21.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.0 steals, and 1.0 block while shooting 45.2% from the field.<\/p>\n His standout performance came in the opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a>, when he scored 30 points in a 105-92 defeat.<\/p>\n Bufkin shot 8-of-16 from the field, knocked down five three-pointers, and added four rebounds, six assists, and five steals.<\/p>\n Despite his latest setback, Bufkin has demonstrated enough ability to remain an intriguing prospect for teams seeking backcourt depth.<\/p>\n Whether his next opportunity comes with the Pelicans\u2019 or Lakers\u2019 G League affiliates, another NBA organization, or overseas, the former first-round pick may not have to wait long for his next move to materialize.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMatt Evans<\/a> is a sports journalist from the United Kingdom, based in Paris, with over a decade of experience covering the NBA and wider global sport. More about Matt Evans<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Lakers’ Kobe Bufkin during his 10-day stint in the NBA against his former team, the Atlanta Hawks…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":932432,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[64,63,590,85],"class_list":["post-932431","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-nba","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/932431","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=932431"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/932431\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/932432"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=932431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=932431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=932431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}