The Los Angeles Lakers finally know where LeBron James is heading next.
With LeBron joining the Philadelphia 76ers, they will most definitely be glad they won’t have to deal with him in the playoffs until a hypothetical NBA Finals matchup.
Now, they must focus on kicking the tires of the Luka Doncic era with the right foot, which is why they’ve been one of the most active teams in basketball this offseason.
According to ESPN insider Dave McMenamin, they’re far from done making moves, though that means someone will have to be the odd man out.
The Lakers may have to dump someone
“There’s 16 players on the team. So just by virtue of that information, they aren’t done,” McMenamin said on NBA Today. “Between now and the start of the regular season, they could carry 16, they carry up to 20 through training camp, but through now, the start of the regular season, you’ve got to get rid of a player. Whether that’s going to be continuing to try to move someone like Jarred Vanderbilt or Dalton Knecht that they’ve not had success with thus far and they’ve, quite frankly, tried for a while here, or could it be someone like Jaden Hardy who was picked up in the Deandre Ayton deal?”
The Lakers already tried to trade Dalton Knecht, and there doesn’t seem to be a market for the former first-round pick.
As for Jarred Vanderbilt, he’s an outstanding defender, but he hasn’t been consistent enough on offense to get on the floor often for JJ Redick’s team.
Whatever the case, LeBron’s decision will have a massive ripple effect around the league, as every team waiting for him will now have to pivot and make other moves.
As such, it’ll be interesting to see what general manager Rob Pelinka does to get this team back to the mountaintop.