New Lakers Rumors Reveal Top NBA Free Agent Targets After LeBron James' Decision to Leave

With the free-agent negotiating window opening in a few hours, the Los Angeles Lakers at least have more clarity about their offseason priorities.

ESPN's Shams Charania reported LeBron James informed the team he plans to sign with another team. Colleague Ramona Shelburne laid out the players L.A. is targeting right now, a group headlined by centers Jalen Duren, Walker Kessler and Mitchell Robinson:

Losing James obviously makes the task more difficult in terms of building a roster capable of winning a championship. The general plan probably doesn't change that much, though.

The Lakers made Luka Dončić their focal point when they signed him to a $160.4 million extension. He effectively supplanted LeBron as the face of the franchise.

The Athletic's Dan Woike and Sam Amick reported in May how L.A. made commitments to Dončić to convince him on the extension.

"Those promises were to give him a locker room full of his type of players, to find him replicants, if not improvements, of the balanced roster he made a finals run with in Dallas in 2024 before the stunning trade that sent him west," Woike and Amick wrote.

No longer having James is at least beneficial from the standpoint of trying to satisfy two marquee players who are 14 years apart in age.

No need is more glaring for the Lakers than that of a rim-running center. They can't go into another season with Deandre Ayton as their starter at the 5.

The trouble for L.A. is that Duren and Kessler are restricted free agents, which gives their current teams matching rights. Signing one of the two may require an overwhelming offer or giving up additional assets in a sign-and-trade.

Duren and Kessler have some obvious drawbacks as well. Duren's performance fell off noticeably in the playoffs, which is when the Lakers would need him to deliver. Kessler logged just five appearances in 2025-26, which is the third straight year his number of games played declined.

Removing James' cap hold from the books gives president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka a lot of wiggle room.

Pelinka doesn't exactly have a great track record, though, when it comes to personnel moves. Sure, he has successfully reeled in big fish such as James, Dončić and Anthony Davis, but one Finals trip during LeBron's eight seasons speaks for itself.

Considering Luka can hit free agency as early as 2028, it's imperative Pelinka gets a supporting cast that can propel the team on a deep playoff run.