Los Angeles Lakers' Biggest Offseason Needs Ahead of 2026 NBA Draft

The Los Angeles Lakers could have one of the most fascinating offseasons of any NBA team, as six starters/key rotation players could all become free agents.

Whether starting center Deandre Ayton comes back or not, the Lakers need to improve their rim protection.

Los Angeles allowed opponents to shoot a whopping 72.0 percent in the restricted area, ranking next to last among all 30 NBA teams. The only franchise that was worse, the Utah Jazz, lost starting center Walker Kessler to shoulder surgery after just five games.

There are a number of shot-blocking centers that should go in the late first or early second round for the Lakers to select and plug in behind Ayton, assuming he returns.

2025-26 Record: 53-29

Draft Pick: 25

Wing Defense

One of the craziest things about Nico Harrison's Luka Dončić trade was the fact that he made so many savvy moves to build a team around him.

Additions like P.J. Washington, Derrick Jones Jr. and Naji Marshall all made sense. With Luka's occasional struggles or lack of effort on defense, it's important to surround him with aggressive, athletic wings who'll make up for his shortcomings.

With the exception of maybe Rui Hachimura, Jarred Vanderbilt and Marcus Smart, the Los Angeles Lakers haven't really had that with Luka. And is an unrestricted free agent, Vanderbilt was almost unplayable on offense and Smart turns 33 next season.

In other words, L.A. has to reload Dončić's supporting cast and do it with defense in mind.

A Rim Runner

In his first season alongside Luka, Deandre Ayton embraced being a rim runner a bit more than he has in earlier seasons, but he doesn't bring the same level of defense that Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II did to those Mavericks teams.

Another center who's fine with doing little more than rolling hard to the rim on one end and protecting it on the other would fit well with Luka's playmaking and sometimes spotty defense.

A Third Option

LeBron James leaving the Lakers sort of feels like a foregone conclusion, but it won't be easy to replace 20.9 points and 7.2 assists, especially if Dončić and Austin Reaves battle injuries again.

If L.A. does move on (and it probably should be prioritizing roster fits with Luka), it'll need at least one more playmaker to come off the bench and hopefully pick up some of the slack left by LeBron.