Every offseason, like clockwork, the same story comes up in the rumor mill: “Lakers target NBA’s best player as free agent.”
That’s not to say it never happened, as the allure of wearing the purple and gold led to some major free agents landing in Los Angeles. The most notable of course was Shaquille O’Nealwhich resulted in three championships, followed by LeBron Jameswho helped them win a title in 2020 during the COVID bubble season.
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But the free agent market hasn’t been kind to the Lakers lately. Even last offseason, Klay Thompsonmuch to the dismay of his father and the rest of the Los Angeles leadership, chose the The Dallas Mavericks on his father’s old team, avoiding them to play alongside them Luka Doncic And Kyrie Irving with the reigning Western Conference champions.
That hasn’t stopped analysts from speculating that the Lakers will pursue Doncic, who is entering the third year of a five-year contract with the Mavericks that includes a player option in 2026-27. He wouldn’t be an unrestricted free agent until the 2027 offseason, and he’s also eligible for a super-max extension in the 2025 offseason that would end up paying him the largest salary in NBA history.
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But beyond the finances, the Lakers’ shine has faded. Since the 2019-20 season, they have missed the playoffs once, lost in the first round twice and, in their most successful season, were swept in the Western Conference Finals in a series they had no chance in. Last season, they fired head coach Darvin Ham after losing 4-1 in the first round to Denver, hiring a new head coach JJ Redick to take over in a move that illustrates some of the management’s dysfunctions.
The main thing to note about the on-court performance is the lack of stability within the Lakers organization: Frank Vogel won the title in 2019-20, but was fired two seasons later. Darvin Ham only coached for two seasons before being fired. That kind of turnover has created a toxic situation that doesn’t bode well for a first-year head coach like Redick.
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Why would Doncic leave a ready-made situation in Dallas to play in LA, where things are so unstable? What are the advantages beyond the Lakers’ “aura” and playing in LA? LeBron James is 39, and while Anthony Davis is only 31 and playing at a very high level, the rest of the roster is seriously lacking in young talent.
Mavs General Manager Nico Harrison The Lakers built a team around Doncic that reached the NBA Finals last season, in addition to making even more roster improvements. It’s a conversation that might have made sense an offseason ago after Dallas missed the playoffs, but giving credence to the rumor that every NBA star is dying to play for LA seems like a mistake for the Lakers from a free agency strategy standpoint.
If Doncic were to leave Dallas, which seems unreasonable given that he still has three years left on his contract, Los Angeles wouldn’t exactly be a prime destination. But since this is the Lakers, Mavericks fans will be hearing about it all offseason.
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