Lakers Trade Rumors, Latest Buzz Ahead of 2026 NBA Draft, Free Agency
Draft day has arrived, basketball fans. The first round of the 2026 NBA draft will take place on Tuesday night, and the Los Angeles Lakers will be hoping to improve their roster over the next two days.
The primary focus of Los Angeles' offseason will be on retaining Austin Reaves as a long-term running mate to Dončić. However, L.A. is also expected to try to retain LeBron James while improving a core group that wasn't good enough to overcome injuries in the postseason.
With the draft mere hours away and the free-agent negotiation period set to open on June 30, let's dive into some of the latest Lakers-related trade buzz.
Lakers Open to Trading First-Round Selection
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The Lakers are set to have the 25th overall selection on Tuesday night, and they will have options with the pick. According to ESPN's Dave McMenamin (h/t Bleacher Report's Joseph Zucker), they've worked out at least 11 prospects ahead of the draft.
According to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times, L.A. will "probably will be in search of a center who can be a lob threat or an athletic wing who can play defense and knock down three-pointers."
Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman paired the Lakers with Duke forward Isaiah Evans in his final NBA mock draft.
While there's a good chance that Los Angeles can find a valuable role player by staying put and selecting at No. 25, there's no guarantee that it will. According to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints, the Lakers are "said to be very open" to trading the 25th pick.
This means that a move up, a move down, or a trade involving a veteran player could be in store for the Lakers on draft night.
Lu Dont is a Potential Trade Target
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Unlike in years past, the Lakers haven't really been linked to any superstars in trade rumors. Most buzz and speculation have involved them chasing a role-playing center or 3-and-D specialist to help round out the current core.
ESPN insiders Ben Golliver, Zach Kram, and André Snellings, for example, proposed a hypothetical trade for Dallas Mavericks center Daniel Gafford back in May. Earlier this month, NBA insider Marc Stein reported that Gafford is one of the players that Dallas is "open" to trading.
Given Gafford's experience with Dončić, he would be a sensible target if he is indeed available. So far, though, there have been no reported talks between L.A. and Dallas.
However, according to NBA insider Jake Fischer, there have been talks between the Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder regarding Lu Dort's "availability."
On the surface, Dort would be a sensible target for the Lakers because of his defensive ability. He's also just 27 years old and would fit into the L.A.'s desired timeline with Dončić and (hopefully) Reaves.
However, he's set to earn a $17.7 million salary this season if the Thunder exercise his team option. That's a pretty hefty cost on top of whatever Rob Relinka and Co. would have to give up to acquire Dort in a trade.
L.A. Was Never Involved in the Giannis Sweepstakes
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The top prize in the 2026 trade sweepstakes figures to be Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, and he's now headed to the Miami Heat in exchange for multiple picks and players, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
Trade speculation has hovered around Antetokounmpo for some time, and several teams were interested in acquiring him. According to Charania, Miami and the Boston Celtics had been the finalists. However, the Lakers have reportedly never been part of the Giannis discussion.
"The Lakers haven't come up in any of my conversations at all," Fischer recently said (h/t Adel Ahmad of Heavy).
And not only has L.A. not been interested in Giannis, but it has reportedly been uninterested in helping another team facilitate a trade in a multi-team swap.
"I have not heard that the Lakers would be part of a Giannis multi-team construction," Stein said on the All NBA Podcast (h/t Caleb Hightower of The Sporting News).
This offseason's Antetokounmpo sweepstakes, it would seem, has been a bit of drama that has involved several teams but has never involved the Lakers.
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