The Los Angeles Lakers made LeBron James the happiest man in the world when they selected his eldest son, Bronny, with the 55th pick in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft. But the franchise seems to have more in store for The King.
While LA has been quiet this offseason, we shouldn’t rule out new arrivals this year. According to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the Lakers could end up getting Washington Wizards center Jonas Valanciunas with the season already underway.
“Do we think Jonas Valanciunas will be an offer from the Wizards midway through the season… I wouldn’t rule out Jonas Valanciunas eventually ending up as a Laker this year,” Windhorst said on The Hoop Collective, via NBA on ESPN. “That’s all I’m gonna say.”
Of course, it would be better if the purple and gold strengthen the squad before the new season gets underway. But still, getting Valanciunas would be great news for LeBron and the Lakers as long as he doesn’t arrive too late in the campaign.
Jonas Valanciunas #17 of the New Orleans Pelicans reacts after a foul during game two of the first round of the NBA playoffs against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center on April 24, 2024 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Report: LeBron James was willing to take pay cut for Valanciunas
Back in June, with notable free agents still in the NBA open market, the Lakers were linked to a number of big names. LeBron was reportedly willing to take a pay cut for only a handful of potential teammates, and Valanciunas was understood to be one of them.
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“The type of player that James would be willing to make a financial sacrifice for would be an established veteran playmaker like James Harden or Klay Thompson, or an established big man to play alongside Anthony Davis — like Jonas Valanciunas,” Dave McMenamin of ESPN reported.
Harden ultimately re-signed with the Los Angeles Clippers, whereas Thompson ended up with the Dallas Mavericks. Valanciunas, who spent the last three years with the New Orleans Pelicans, was signed and traded to the Washington Wizards earlier this month.
JJ Redick believes Lakers need another center
While the Lakers may not have many playmakers in sight to improve the lineup, they can still help LeBron by adding a center that can benefit Anthony Davis. In fact, new head coach JJ Redick revealed he wants a new face at that position.
“You certainly have to look at what I think is actually a very good roster, a very balanced roster. We’d love to, we tried, but we’d love to, at some point, get another five man, a big bruising five man,” Redick said on Sirius XM NBA Radio. “You look at the Western Conference right now, whether it’s Denver, Minnesota, OKC with what they added, certainly Memphis, they’re going to be back in the hunt, they added Zach Edey, certain matchups in the playoffs, you’re going to need a lot of size.”
