Lakers' Top Free Agent, Trade Options After Gary Trent Jr. Signs Bucks Contract

At this juncture, the Los Angeles Lakers are all but out on acquiring any of the bigger names on the trading block (e.g. Lauri Markkanen, Zach Lavine). And other options appear to be dwindling as well, as former potential Lakers target Gary Trent Jr. has now signed with the Milwaukee Bucks.

The short answer on why is that the Lakers' roster is full, and the team is just under the collective bargaining agreement's second apron.

Jovan Buha of The Athletic explained the situation in detail.

"As things stand, the Lakers have a full roster of 15 players with guaranteed contracts. They're also roughly $45,000 under the second apron of nearly $189 million. That combination means they can't sign any players in free agency or add any additional players (or salary) in any trades. They have two first-round picks to trade (2029 and 2031), as well as multiple first-round swaps and second-round picks."

Buha added that the best way for the team to amass players is through a "consolidation trade," using examples of players on the roster who opted into their deals in 2024-25 (Christian Wood, Jaxson Hayes, Cam Reddish).

"They can either send out more players than they receive in a deal or salary-dump Reddish, Wood and/or Hayes, along with a second-round pick or two, onto a team with roster and financial flexibility. If the Lakers traded two minimum players (Wood, Hayes and Reddish would qualify), they'd have enough room under the second apron to sign a player to the $5.2 million taxpayer midlevel exception. They could also add a player in a trade or sign player(s) to minimum contracts."

The Lakers also have D'Angelo Russell, who opted into his deal for $18.7 million this year. Buha wrote that could provide an "expiring mid-sized contract to use as a matching salary in a trade."

So simply put, the Lakers don't have a ton of flexibility here.

If the Lakers want to try and do some reshuffling at the back end of the roster, there are some veteran free agent minimum options out there. And there's also a talked-about trade target that does make sense if L.A. can pull off the move.

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Evan Fournier

Fournier, a 31-year-old shooting guard with 11 years experience, hasn't seen extensive action since 2021-22. In that year, Fournier averaged 14.1 points on 41.7 percent shooting (38.9 percent from three) in 80 starts for the New York Knicks. Fournier then proceeded to fall out of the Knicks' rotation before being traded to the Detroit Pistons last February.

Fournier got more run for the last-place Pistons, but he didn't find much success, posting just 7.2 points on 37.3 percent shooting off the bench in 18.7 minutes per game.

So it's not a big surprise Fournier hasn't found a team yet, but he's about to step foot on the international stage by representing France in the Summer Olympics.

A big performance there could reignite interest in him, and he has an opportunity to showcase his talents, especially with France being considered one of the top contenders outside the United States.

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Gordon Hayward

Hayward, a 14-year NBA veteran, was supposed to be a clutch veteran addition to the Oklahoma City Thunder for their stretch and playoff runs after the team acquired the ex-Charlotte Hornets last February.

That didn't end up happening. By the time his Thunder career ended, Hayward wasn't getting off the bench.

Now he's a free agent, and it's unclear where his next opportunity may arise. Injuries have unfortunately taken a toll, but when healthy, he is still clearly a productive contributor. Hayward averaged 14.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.6 assists over 25 starts for the Hornets last year.

He probably won't find a starting gig in the NBA, but off the bench, Hayward can be a great asset for a team in need of some help on the wing and/or more offensive production off the bench. Arguably, the Lakers need help on both those fronts.

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Wendell Carter Jr.

The connection between the Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. has been made before. Sean Deveney of Heavy.com previously reported that Carter Jr. is still potential trade candidate for L.A. as of July 10.

"Fairly young, probably a little undervalued because of his red flags (injuries) and still tapping into his skillset," an executive told Deveney. "The contract is right, it makes sense for them. That's a guy they're monitoring, but a lot of teams are."

The Lakers would obviously need to acquire Carter via trade, creating some complications. Deveney dove into that a bit.

"They'd likely want a first-round pick, but the Lakers might not want to pay that price, at least not yet," Deveney wrote.

"The Lakers could send D'Angelo Russell for Carter, but the magic would want some youth. That means either a pick or last year's first-rounder, Jalen Hood-Schifino."

The Lakers don't have a clear option at the backup 5 right now. Carter, who has two seasons remaining on a four-year, $50 million deal, could very well be that answer. He averaged 11.0 points on 52.5 percent shooting and 6.9 rebounds last season as a starter for the Magic.

Adding Carter could potentially mean that the Lakers lose Russell, but they may be seeing him leave for nothing next offseason regardless when he hits free agency. Carter could potentially be filling a bigger need as is with the Lakers needing some more frontcourt depth.