The Lakers have agreed to a one-year deal with free agent forward Ziaire Williams, a league source confirmed to the Southern California News Group on Monday afternoon. Williams, who is the 15th and final member of the Lakers’ roster unless further transactions change that, is set to make $3 million, ESPN was first to report.
Williams is a familiar face to Southern California basketball fans. He played high school basketball at Sierra Canyon, overlapping with Lakers guard Bronny James. He played one season at Stanford before beginning his NBA career with the Memphis Grizzlies as the 10th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.
The 6-foot-9 forward spent the past two seasons with the Brooklyn Nets, where he started 58 of 119 games for the rebuilding franchise.
Last season, Williams averaged a career-high 10.2 points per game in 22.9 minutes over 56 games. He shot 42.5% from the field and 34.3% from 3-point range, while showing good tendencies on defense by averaging 1.4 steals per game last season.
Williams, born in Lancaster, provides the Lakers with a low-cost option off the bench. Taller than a prototypical wing, Williams will likely split time between small forward and power forward, helping fill the void left by the departure of free agent forward Rui Hachimura, who signed with the Clippers. Forwards Sandro Mamukelashvili and Jake LaRavia will also help to cover in the season ahead.
The 2026-27 season will be Williams’ sixth season in the NBA, and his best chance at making the playoffs since facing the Lakers as a member of the Grizzlies in a first-round series in 2023.
The Lakers have expressed interest in Jonathan Kuminga, a league source told SCNG, but any additional acquisition would likely require a sign-and-trade deal, considering the Lakers are already above the salary cap but below the first apron.