Los Angeles Lakers

ClutchPoints insider Brett Siegel remains skeptical the Lakers can land free agent Bruce Brown, noting Los Angeles is already $500,000 over the tax and would need to cut multiple players just to fit him.

A hypothetical three-team trade would send Patrick Williams and Isaac Okoro from Chicago to the Lakers, while Jerami Grant would go from Memphis to the Bulls. Los Angeles would ship out Jarred Vanderbilt, Jaden Hardy and Dalton Knecht to Memphis.

The Ringer's Zach Lowe said the Clippers had been quietly positioning for a run at Nikola Jokic if he ever left Denver in 2027 free agency, but called that dead after the NBA stripped Los Angeles of five first-round picks over its Kawhi Leonard cap circumvention case.

A trade idea floated by Heavy would send Derrick Jones Jr. from the Clippers to the Lakers, reuniting him with Luka Doncic after the two shared the 2024 Finals run in Dallas.

Cam Whitmore, waived by Cleveland roughly a week after arriving there in the five-team Peyton Watson sign-and-trade, is again a free agent after earlier stops with Houston and Washington.

Sean Deveney reports the Lakers tried to use Jaden Hardy as a piece in a Jonathan Kuminga sign-and-trade with Atlanta, and now that deal has fallen through, they simply want to move on from him.

A trade idea floated by Heavy would send Dalton Knecht from the Lakers to Toronto for Jamison Battle's expiring $2.3M salary and a 2029 second-round pick.

Jonathan Kuminga told The Athletic he passed on the Lakers because of the outside noise surrounding the team, wanting an environment that kept him focused on basketball and his growth. He said Minnesota offered a better defensive fit and a clearer role, calling it the better overall situation for him.

With Jonathan Kuminga signing with Minnesota instead, the Lakers no longer have an obvious motivation to move Jarred Vanderbilt, Khobi Price reports. LA had reportedly explored sign-and-trade scenarios involving Vanderbilt this offseason, including one tied to a possible Atlanta deal for Kuminga, but none materialized.

With Jonathan Kuminga off the board in Minnesota, Lakers reporter Jacob Rude says a trade is now more likely than a free-agent signing, though roster spots around the league are scarce.