The Los Angeles Lakers have set their sights on acquiring the Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic to lead the team after veteran superstar LeBron James, according to journalist Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer.
O’Connor has tipped the Californian franchise to make their move for the Slovenian next summer if James, who will be approaching his 41st birthday, doesn’t exercise his $52.2 million player option. If he does, then Doncic’s potential arrival is Los Angeles could be pushed back to 2026, when LeBron’s current contract expires. Assuming, that is, the forward ends his glittering career at that point.
Of course, turning such a dream into a reality isn’t always that simple. Any move for a player of Doncic’s calibre would be extremely complex, and costly.
The 25-year-old signed a $215 million, five-year contract in 2022, which ties him to the Mavs until 2026 at a minimum. That extends to 2027 if he exercises his $48.9 million player option.
Those figures would not necessarily cause the Lakers an issue. What is rather more problematic, though, is that Doncic is said to be close to agreeing the most lucrative NBA contract in history with his current team. In the summer of 2025, the guard could sign a $346 million, five-year deal, an average of $69 million per season, although that number will surpass $70 million in some of them. An astronomical amount of money that only the Mavericks can pay under the new collective agreement.
How, then, could the Lakers persuade Doncic to swap Dallas for Los Angeles? It’s hard to imagine the former Real Madrid player giving up the sums mentioned. However, there would be the possibility of the two franchises coming to a blockbuster trade agreement, after he has signed his eye-watering contract.
James’ retirement would free up plenty of salary cap space and the Lakers could offer the Mavs a whole host of draft picks up until 2031. At present, the Californians have five first-round and five second-round picks they have been saving up for a rainy day. “The Lakers, by not trading their future picks, are clearly still thinking long-term right now,” claims O’Connor, who remains sceptical about whether they would give up so many trades for one player.
