The Los Angeles Lakers haven’t made many roster changes to start the offseason, but they have made plenty of waves. Thus far, the Lakers have swapped out Spencer Dinwiddie and Taurean Prince for rookies Dalton Knecht and Bronny James. All other moves have seen players return to Los Angeles on new contracts or via having their options picked up.
With LeBron James back in the fold for nearly $50 million next season, the Lakers are basically out on signing any free agents. Los Angeles is just over the second apron, and limited to signing players to minimum contracts. The Lakers also have 15 players on fully guaranteed contracts for next season.
That means the path forward for improvement will be via trade. The Lakers have engaged the Brooklyn Nets, Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz in recent days in various trade talks. Los Angeles has been linked to players like Dorian Finney-Smith of the Nets and Jerami Grant of the Blazers. The Jazz talks could involve moving a salary or two into Utah’s cap space to facilitate a trade.