Los Angeles Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly agreed to terms with three free agents on Thursday.

L.A. signed ex-San Antonio Spurs wing Lonnie Walker IV to a one-year, $6.5 million contract, per Shams Charania of Stadium and The Athletic.

Ex-Golden State Warriors forward Juan Toscano-Anderson will now join the Lakers after agreeing to a one-year, veteran's minimum deal, per Jovan Buha of The Athletic.

In addition, former Chicago Bulls wing Troy Brown Jr. also reached an agreement with L.A. on a one-year, veteran's minimum contract, per Charania.

Here's a look at the Lakers' roster following the moves.

The Lakers may not be done making moves.

Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving, who exercised his 2022-23 player option, is reportedly looking to orchestrate a trade to the Lakers.

The feeling is reportedly mutual regarding a potential Irving-Lakers union, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN (h/t Harrison Faigen of Silver Screen & Roll).

The Lakers are looking to rebound from a 33-49 season that ended with them missing out on the play-in tournament. They tried to form a new big three by adding Russell Westbrook alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but the partnership did not work out.

Davis and James suffered injuries that sidelined them for stretches, and the team was unable to form much chemistry or consistent rotations over the season. Westbrook also struggled in purple and gold.

For now, the Lakers have made some short-term moves to fill out their rotation next year, but the Irving watch is on as a potential reunion with James, his ex-Cleveland Cavaliers teammate, could be in place.

The Brooklyn Nets seem likely to have a dramatically different look next season, with Kevin Durant requesting a trade on Thursday and Kyrie Irving—who already was seeking sign-and-trade scenarios before ultimately exercising his player option—likely to follow him out the door.

One team that has been regularly linked to Irving is the Los Angeles Lakers, but they likely would need to get a third team involved to absorb Russell Westbrook's huge contract in any potential deal.

Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News noted the Charlotte Hornets could be one team that got involved in any talks though added that the Nets reportedly wouldn't be interested in receiving Gordon Hayward:

What the Lakers are able to fetch for Westbrook would ultimately be re-routed to Brooklyn in exchange for Irving. The Nets might be willing to accept a deal that includes a combination of sharpshooting point guard Terry Rozier, versatile wing Kelly Oubre Jr., former first-round pick P.J. Washington and draft compensation. The Nets are unlikely to accept Gordon Hayward back in an Irving deal, according to a league source, as Hayward is due in excess of $60M over the next two seasons and has had a number of injuries that have kept him off the floor the past two seasons.

The Nets find themselves in a tough spot with Irving. If the veteran point guard makes it known that he plans to sign with the Lakers next summer in free agency, teams around the league aren't going to be inclined to give up much for a one-year rental.

The Lakers, in turn, have basically two options for acquiring Irvin: Get rid of Westbrook or give up Anthony Davis.

The latter is nonsensical, so if the Lakers want Irving, they'll need to find a third or fourth team to take on Westbrook's huge contract. That alone is going to cost them draft capital to get a team to take on that deal, more than likely, while finding a team that has pieces that the Nets will be interested in.

So it's going to be a complicated situation, although the alternative for the Nets is Irving existing in limbo for a year before Brooklyn likely loses him without getting anything in return.

As for the Hornets, it's curious why they would want to take on a ball-dominant point guard like Westbrook when they already have a young star in LaMelo Ball at the position. Taking the rock out of Ball's hands seems like a very poor idea.

Hayward, 32, would be the logical piece to move in the potential trade, given his $30 million cap hit next season. But injuries have majorly limited Hayward in recent years, and he averaged just 15.9 points in 49 games last season and has only exceeded 20 points per game in a season once in his career despite his lucrative contract.

So it isn't shocking that the Nets reportedly aren't interested in bringing him back in an Irving deal, especially with Gordon under contract through the 2023-24 campaign.

But it is going to take a third team for the Lakers to end up with Irving this season. It's going to be one wild July in Brooklyn.

Fresh off winning an NBA championship, Juan Toscano-Anderson is ready to take the next step in his career with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Per Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, Toscano-Anderson has agreed to a contract with Los Angeles.

The writing appeared to be on the wall for Toscano-Anderson with the Golden State Warriors when they declined to extend him a qualifying offer for $2.1 million. They are already deep into the luxury tax and paid a combined $346 million between player salaries and repeater tax last season.

No one is suggesting the Warriors are going to start cutting payroll, but at some point, the front office has to find some ways to save a little bit on the margins.

Toscano-Anderson had a long climb just to make it to the NBA. He went undrafted out of Marquette in 2015 and spent three years bouncing between Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional in Mexico and Liga Profesional de Baloncesto in Venezuela.

The Golden State Warriors signed Toscano-Anderson to their G League team in October 2018. The Oakland native spent two seasons with the Santa Cruz Warriors before making his NBA debut at 26 years old in February 2020.

Head coach Steve Kerr has used Toscano-Anderson primarily off the bench during his three seasons with the Warriors. He's been an efficient scorer in limited minutes, shooting 52.3 percent from the field.

The 2020-21 season was Toscano-Anderson's best season as a shooter. He made 40.2 percent of his three-pointers on 1.7 attempts per game.

Losing Toscano-Anderson won't put much of a dent in Golden State's quest to repeat as NBA champions. He was a solid player off the bench, but never carved out much of a role on a strong roster.

On the other hand, a team like the Lakers that is starved for depth can take advantage of the things that Toscano-Anderson can do.

Toscano-Anderson has the versatility to play shooting guard and small forward. He provided a burst of energy for the Warriors, particularly during the 2020-21 campaign. His shooting could get better with LeBron James commanding so much attention from opposing defenses.

Lakers fans are accustomed to getting the marquee names, but one reason things fell apart for them last season was the lack of depth because of a series of injuries. Toscano-Anderson is exactly the type of competent glue guy this roster needs.

The Los Angeles Lakers strengthened their depth on the wing Thursday.

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reports the Lakers have agreed to a veteran's minimum contract with small forward Troy Brown Jr., who spent last season with the Chicago Bulls.

Brown appeared in 66 games with seven starts for Chicago last season. He averaged 4.3 points and 3.1 rebounds in 16 minutes per game.

Entering his fifth year in the NBA, Brown began his career with the Washington Wizards after being drafted 15th overall in 2018. The Oregon product has his best year during his sophomore season with the Wizards, as he posted career highs of 10.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals.

Washington traded Brown to Chicago midway through the 2020-21 season as part of a three-team deal that also involved the Boston Celtics.

The Lakers are hoping for a bounce-back season in 2022-23. The team failed to make the playoffs this year after finishing 33-49 despite having superstars LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook on the roster. Los Angeles hired former Milwaukee Bucks assistant Darvin Ham as its next head coach, and he's bringing a defensive mindset to the team.

Los Angeles struggled mightily on that end of the floor last season, ranking 28th after allowing opponents to score an average of 115.1 points.

Brown should be able to help the Lakers improve their perimeter defense, but they still have more moves to make if they hope to compete with the elite teams in the Western Conference next season.

Kyrie Irving reportedly plans to join the Los Angeles Lakers when he has the opportunity, according to ESPN's Stephen A. Smith:

"Kyrie Irving is telling everybody he plans on going to L.A., meaning the Lakers, as soon as he possibly can," Smith said on NBA Today.

ESPN's Dave McMenamin provided insight on the Lakers' mindset as Irving continues to push for a move to L.A.:

Irving opted into his contract for the 2022-23 season, which means he can no longer control his landing spot for next season. As Smith noted, the point guard can sign with the Lakers as a free agent next summer when the team is significantly under the salary cap.

A move to the Lakers would allow Irving to team back up with LeBron James after the two spent three years together with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The duo reached the NBA Finals in three straight years and won the 2016 title.

Irving could be on the move this offseason, especially after Kevin Durant requested a trade. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported it's "very likely" that both Durant and Irving have played their last games on the Nets:

Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times reported there was a lot of "chatter" connecting Irving to the Lakers.

Los Angeles was also the only team pursuing Irving in a sign-and-trade before he opted into his deal, per Wojnarowski. The mutual interest could be enough for the Lakers and Nets to work out a trade.

Even without a trade, it seems Irving is planning to eventually end up in Los Angeles.

NBA executives believe that the Los Angeles Lakers could have a package that can land them Brooklyn Nets stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving via trade.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported the news on Thursday's edition of NBA Today.

"But it has been floated to me by executives that if they were to be kept together, the Lakers would potentially have package that you could trade for both of them."

Windhorst went on to say the situation is too "fragile" because it's unknown whether Durant and Irving still want to play together.

He also reported that he heard the only place where a KD-Irving trade package was possible is the Lakers but that "we don’t really have enough information to know."

Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Durant made a trade request directly to Nets governor Joe Tsai on Thursday. Irving has exercised his 2022-23 player option.

Irving and the Lakers have been heavily connected already, with ESPN's Stephen A. Smith reporting the following on Thursday:

Irving is looking to force his way to the Lakers, per Windhorst (h/t NBACentral). Windhorst also reported (h/t Jay King of The Athletic) that the Lakers were looking to acquire Irving in a package that included Russell Westbrook.

Durant-to-the-Lakers is a curveball of sorts, and that appears far more difficult to envision considering the immense interest around the league in his services. Per Wojnarowski, more than half the NBA has called the Nets about KD. He also reported that the Phoenix Suns and Miami Heat are high on Durant's "wish list."

Ultimately, Irving heading to the Lakers seems like a distinct possibility, with a package deal involving KD unlikely on the surface.

Earlier this week, Russell Westbrook decided to opt in to his $47.1 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers, making him one of the five highest-paid players in the NBA this coming season.

Normally, that would be the end of a player's mentions in the rumor mill leading up to NBA free agency, which begins on Thursday, June 30 at 6 p.m. ET.

But for Westbrook, his decision didn't exactly put the kibosh on the trade whispers, it only shifted them.

For now, according to The Athletic's Jovan Buha, the Lakers, despite mentioning that a trade is still possible, are looking ahead to the season with the idea that their embattled star will be on the roster.

"If he comes back, he will be embraced here with open arms," Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka told NBA.com's Mark Medina last week before Westbrook's decision. "And I want to put a path in front of him to have a successful season."

Pelinka's comment seems to put a positive spin on Westbrook's place in the team's future, but that might be a bit of misdirection.

"The Lakers are currently planning on beginning next season with him on the roster," Buha wrote. "That could change if the Lakers find a team willing to take on Westbrook’s expiring contract without also demanding a future first-round pick (2027 or 2029), which hasn’t been the case thus far,.

"The Lakers would still prefer to trade Westbrook, given the concerns surrounding his declining play, his fit with James and Davis and his willingness to adapt to the team’s desired role for him."

That role, according to new head coach Darvin Ham, will require a laser-like focus on the defensive end.

"We’ve been honest about how we think he fits with this team and what we expect of him next year if he decides to opt in and be here," Pelinka added. "He’s ready to embrace the philosophy of defense first as well. He made that clear to Darvin and me."

Defense isn't Westbrook's calling card, though, so it remains to be seen if he'll embrace that new role and/or excel in it.

The Westbrook saga is a major departure from his 2016-17 season, when he won the MVP award, but considering that he's currently on his fourth team in four years, he's run out of the good will afforded to him from winning the Maurice Podoloff trophy.

Last year, by all accounts, was the 33-year old guard's worst of his career, averaging 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists and per game.

Westbrook isn't known for his efficiency, but on a team with LeBron James, his shooting deficiencies were under an unforgiving microscope.

On the season, he shot 44.4 percent from the field and an unfortunate 29.8 percent from behind the arc.

Beyond the numbers, one of the things that really seemed to rub the organization and the Lakers faithful the wrong way was his unwillingness to take ownership for his struggles.

Ultimately, that led to Los Angeles missing the playoffs completely and head coach Frank Vogel getting the pink slip.

Since then, the Lakers have hired Ham to replace Vogel and he has his own vision for Westbrook.

"One thing I mentioned to Russ is the way I’m built, the success I’ve seen, one thing we always preached and will continue to preach to be our foundation of our teams is a defensive mindset, being able to defend at a high level," Ham told Dan Patrick.

"And I challenged him, and he accepted the challenge. That’s a part of the word 'sacrifice' we use. And being able to move him around in different spaces on the floor as we go back on the offensive end."

Ham seems to be confident that Westbrook can turn it around, but behind the scenes, Pelinka and the front office are still trying to move him.

Problem is, the rest of the league witnessed Westbrook's performance last year and are reluctant to take on his $47.1 million salary because of it.

That said, there have been seemingly impossible to trade contracts that have been moved in the past, so it's still very possible that the Lakers find a way to move on from the 14-year veteran.

Otherwise, they'll have to hold out hope that Westbrook will invoke his own "Why Not?" mantra when it comes to whether or not he can become a defensive stopper and improve upon last season's shooting woes to help open up the floor for Anthony Davis and James.

The challenge has been accepted, the jury's going to be out on if it's eventually met.

The Los Angeles Lakers don't have a lot of flexibility to boost their roster in free agency, but they do hope to retain Malik Monk when the new league year begins on Thursday.

Per The Athletic's Jovan Buha, the Lakers will "strongly consider" re-signing Monk if they don't land a tall wing and he's willing to take a discount to remain with the club.

Monk told Buha earlier this week that he would be open to signing a cheaper deal with the Lakers due to his comfort with the organization.

"They might not be able to pay me as much as I want," he said. "But I could be here and be way more comfortable as a Laker than going to any other team and they're paying me $5 million more. So it's just me trying to figure out what team would really want me."

The Lakers have the taxpayer mid-level exception, worth up to $6.3 million, available if they want to re-sign Monk.

Buha noted the 24-year-old is probably the most realistic target for Los Angeles this offseason. He also cited Otto Porter Jr. and T.J. Warren among the team's list of top potential options to fill the need for a three-and-D wing.

The Athletic's Anthony Slater noted the Golden State Warriors intend to pursue re-signing Porter, but he is "considered obtainable for outside suitors" willing to go above and beyond what the Warriors can offer.

Warren is a great unknown at this point in his career. The North Carolina State alum played in four games during the 2020-21 season because of a foot injury that required surgery. He missed all of last season while recovering from the procedure.

Monk signed a one-year deal with the Lakers in free agency last year and was effective in his first season with the club, setting career highs in scoring average (13.8 points per game), rebounding (3.4) and assists (2.9) in 76 games.

Monk's 5.8 three-point attempts per game ranked second on the Lakers (LeBron James, 8.0). He shot 39.1 percent from behind the arc.

LeBron James may not be taking an active role in the Los Angeles Lakers' offseason.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported Thursday on Get Up that James is "just going to be a spectator for the next six weeks and see what the Lakers are able to do."

"I'm not expecting them to do much," Windhorst said. "And I also think, even if he doesn't extend his contract, it's not necessarily a vote of no confidence in the Lakers. It's just to leave both his options and the Lakers' options open."

Star players typically want to involve themselves in whatever their team is doing, whether it's laying out potential personnel moves or recruiting prospective free agents.

When it comes to the Lakers, though, there might not be much for James to do.

Windhorst cited Juan Toscano-Anderson and Josh Jackson as potential targets for the team, which speaks to how much the franchise has its hands tied.

Toscano-Anderson averaged 13.6 minutes per game for the Golden State Warriors and logged a total of 49 minutes in the team's championship run. The 29-year-old certainly isn't a major difference-maker.

Jackson, meanwhile, has played for four teams through five seasons. The No. 4 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft, he has failed to tap into any of the potential he showed in college at Kansas.

A move for Kyrie Irving represented the one real gambit Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka could make, but Irving is planning on returning to the Brooklyn Nets. Absent that trade, it's difficult to see Russell Westbrook going anywhere, so carrying his $47.1 million salary into 2022-23 leaves Pelinka with few options.

At least the narrative around James is a little different from the reporting immediately after the trade deadline, when the Lakers did nothing amid a season that was falling short of expectations.

Pelinka told reporters there was a sense of "alignment" between he, James and Anthony Davis about the team's deadline plans. ESPN's Dave McMenamin reported the picture Pelinka painted was "totally false."

It appears now James has a better understanding of the predicament the organization faces.