Lakers Need Jonathan Kuminga to Boost Incomplete Free Agency amid Latest NBA Rumors

The Los Angeles Lakers have used the 2026 NBA offseason to fill targeted needs on their roster.

However, since they've arguably opened more holes than they've closed, they have more work to do if they hope to ever construct a contending-caliber roster around Luka Dončić.

They're hoping to add another wing and a big man to this roster, per Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, and they've "focused" on 23-year-old swingman Jonathan Kuminga to fill that former need.

While he has been an imperfect player to this point—struggling with a lot of the non-scoring aspects of the sport—he would move the needle as far the obvious intention to make this roster younger and more athletic. He gets downhill in a hurry, and he has almost anti-gravity bounce.

He should, at least in theory, but an all-purpose stopper on the defensive end with physical tools of this quality. To this point, though, that theoretical impact hasn't translated to the hardwood.

It definitely still could, though. He might feel like a known commodity because he has been visible for so long—the Golden State Warriors drafted him seventh overall in 2021—but he might have multiple leap years still in front of him.

He has never been entrusted with a full-time starting role, or even anything close to that. He has never logged 2,000 minutes in a season and only once crested the 1,500-minute mark.

Are those convenient excuses for his lack of development? Maybe, but they could just as easily be explanations.

There is enough hope, at least, for the Lakers to take the plunge, if for no other reason than the relative dearth of alternatives.

While the Lakers fortified their defensive interior with the Walker Kessler sign-and-trade, their wing rotation could use a tooled-up stopper. Quentin Grimes is a capable point-of-attack defender, but his size (6'4", 210 lbs) limits his versatility. Collin Sexton is even smaller and more offensive-minded.

Even if Kuminga is only a theoretical defensive asset, that'd make him an upgrade. But there have been flashes of him becoming much more than that. He has moments of being a lockdown one-on-one defender, and his off-ball lapses feel like coachable mistakes.

There might be front offices who think Kuminga is who he is at this point and may not give him a second thought. The Lakers should see a big enough potential prize here, though, to want to try cracking his developmental code.

Because they need his defensive upside, and he should realize how much he could benefit in a play-finishing role alongside gravitational creators like Dončić and Austin Reaves. If Kuminga ever ditched the dream of stardom and bought into being a star role player, he could still emerge as a two-way asset.

And that's exactly what this forward collection happens to be missing with LeBron James out the door and Rui Hachimura seemingly following suit.

The Lakers could try a safer right than signing Kuminga, but they need a bigger splash. There might be some risk involved, but the potential reward is worth it.