The Los Angeles Lakers have made some significant moves this offseason, and they’re looking to make one more. The Lakers are reportedly interested in free agent forward Jonathan Kuminga, but what if they don’t get him?
Well, NBA insider Jovan Buha shared the Lakers’ two pathways if they miss out on Kuminga on Buha’s Block.
“One is enticing, one is depressing,” Buha said. “The enticing one is you still explore the trade market. The P.J. Washington, Derrick Jones Jr., Lu Dort, Christian Braun, Cam Johnson, Max Strus, someone like that. You go that route of the guys making somewhere between 10 to 20 million. In the case of Braun and Johnson, a little bit above 20 million, but I think everyone there is between 10 and a half and like 23 million. So you explore that.
“Or you take a couple swings on the minimum market,” Buha continued. “And I just think that if you have this glaring hole in your starting group and you’re hoping to plug it with a minimum player, I think that’s a mistake, and I just don’t think it’s going to work, right? I could be wrong.”
The hole Buha is referring to is at power forward. The Lakers have signed Sandro Mamukelashvili, but he is better suited to being a backup. Buha believes they have to fill that spot with a quality piece, not someone on a minimum contract. He then pointed to some of the best teams in the NBA.
The champion New York Knicks had a starting five in which almost every player was making over $20 million last season. The Oklahoma City Thunder, when fully healthy, would have had a mix of lottery picks and established high-quality role players starting. Injuries were what gave Ajay Mitchell, a second-rounder, a starting role, and he showed early on last season that he wasn’t your ordinary late pick.
As for the team that took down the Thunder in the playoffs, Buha acknowledged the San Antonio Spurs had the one exception in Julian Champagnie. You’re talking about an undrafted forward the Spurs picked up from the scrap heap in 2023 who, a bit unexpectedly, managed to establish himself as a full-time starter midway through last season.
“I guess Champagnie is like the one exception here where you can make that argument, but the Lakers have needed a Champagnie type,” Buha said. “Have not been able to identify a Champagnie type for years. So, I would say I’m skeptical that they find that guy in the market, but maybe they do.”
We indeed haven’t seen the Lakers pluck some relatively unknown player off the market who has turned out to be a valuable piece in recent times. Their only success stories in terms of player development are also probably just Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura. The track record isn’t great. So, the hope would be that the Lakers get Kuminga or one of the players mentioned on the enticing pathway.
If we focus on Kuminga, we’re looking at a player who averaged 12.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 0.6 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game for the Golden State Warriors and the Atlanta Hawks in 2025-26. The Hawks chose to decline their $24.3 million player option on the 23-year-old to allow him to hit free agency.
The Hawks are reportedly willing to execute a sign-and-trade with the Lakers for Kuminga for Jarred Vanderbilt and a 2032 first-round pick swap. Buha said the team is currently reluctant, though, to give up that swap in this deal. It will be interesting to see if the Lakers’ stance changes over the coming days.
