It hasn't been the best start to free agency for the Los Angeles Lakers, with them seemingly being caught flat-footed. While other teams such as the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, and Dallas Mavericks have all gotten better, the Lakers have seemingly gotten worse.
They opted to let Dorian Finney-Smith believe in free agency after giving up two second-round picks to acquire him 4 months ago ahead of the trade deadline. They also failed to land Miles Turner, who surprisingly signed with the Milwaukee Bucks.
While that might have been harder for them to swing, they could have easily traded for Jonas Valanciunas, signed Jordan Clarkson or Gershon Yabusele, or added Clint Capela and Brook Lopez.
Instead, they let all of those players go to other teams while they currently only added Jake LaRavia and are in the running for Deandre Ayton.
The Lakers offseason moves have left a lot to be desired
That isn't exactly the off-season that Lakers fans were hoping for, but it's clear that they are prioritizing having cap space next summer. If they don't sign another player to a multi-year deal, then they can fit two max free agents onto next year's team.
Having three max players, including Luka Dončić, could propel Los Angeles back into the title picture, and with new ownership, they could afford to pay the repeater tax and dominate. That's all well and good, but it could cost them this season with them dangerously thin on the wing and at center.
They don't currently have a center on the roster. Given that it was far and away their best week's position, barring a massive turnaround, it will likely still be that next season.
Could the Lakers' offseason failure lead to LeBron James demanding a trade?
That leads to questions about whether LeBron James will demand a trade. After all, the Lakers likely won't be better than they were last season, and LeBron wants to compete for a championship.
Then again, it would be extremely difficult for another team to trade for his 51 million salary at this point in the off-season. Especially considering that it would likely gut their roster and leave them scrambling to fill out their roster around LeBron and their remaining players.
Overall, the Lakers have failed thus far to make a major impact in free agency. With options dwindling, it appears unlikely that they can salvage their summer, but they may be looking towards the next off-season when they can truly make an impact.