The Los Angeles Lakers will have only their taxpayer MLE (projected at $5.7M) to upgrade the roster via free agency ahead of the 2025-26 season. As such, the franchise is expected to be very active in trades to fill obvious roster holes — especially in the frontcourt — to bolster their chances at title contention.
Fadeaway World proposed a pair of trades that would fill two specific needs: rim protection and perimeter defense. The hypothetical Lakers trade would see the team acquire Nets center Nic Claxton and Timberwolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker.
While Claxton would fit the label of be the ideal log threat / rim-running big man that Luka Doncic is known to prefer, Alexander-Walker is the kind of 3-and-D player the Lakers sorely missed during their 4-1 loss to the Timberwolves in the 2025 playoffs.
Lakers would receive: Nic Claxton
Nets would receive: Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, 2031 first-round pick
“As a young and mobile center, he poses an inherent lob threat,” wrote Siddhant Gupta. “This makes him an ideal partner for Luka Doncic, who is known to exploit mismatches in the pick-and-roll with his big men.”
Lakers Have Limited Free Agency Options
“Additionally, Claxton is quite capable of holding his own in the paint. The Lakers’ lack of paint presence and rim protection was shown to be a glaring flaw in their playoff matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Although the Nets center can’t transform their defensive rotation, he certainly shows enough upside to be able to plug the gap.”
The Alexander-Walker trade would be more complicated since the Toronto native is an unrestricted free agent. As such, it’d have to beat a sign-and-trade scenario.
Furthermore, The Lakers won’t have the cap space to sign Alexander-Walker outright. The Lakers might trade his $11.5M salary and a second-round pick to acquire a reliable role player, who is likely to seek a similar salary.
Lakers would receive: Nickeil Alexander-Walker
Timberwolves would receive: Jarred Vanderbilt, 2025 No. 55 pick
“The addition of the Wolves guard could help reinstate some semblance of balance in the roster,” argued Gupta. “As a player who primarily moves without the ball, Alexander-Walker makes for a solid outlet passing option for Doncic or James on the perimeter.
Lakers Need Size, Defense
“Also, at 6’5″, his length could be of great value to the Lakers’ defensive lineups as well. While additionally making considerations for other intangibles, he would prove to be a solid pick-up.”
The hypothetical Lakers trades would mean Austin Reaves and Dalton Knecht, two valuable assets, remain on the roster. Such an outcome means the Lakers could potentially flip Reaves and Knecht in other deals that could become available.
Reaves, who will be a free agent in 2026, is expected to earn a salary of $30 million. According to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report, the Lakers may consider trading him before then.
“Outside of the Lakers’ distant movable future first-round pick (2031 or 2032) and any first-round swaps they can offer, Reaves is their most attractive trade chip,” Pincus wrote.
“Reaves is nearly sure to decline his $14.9 million player option for the 2026-27 season to explore unrestricted free agency next summer, seeking a salary in the $30 million starting range. The most he can extend for ($19.5 million) is far short of that number. Furthermore, any team acquiring him would need behind-the-scenes assurances that he’d re-sign at a pre-arranged price, although they wouldn’t be technically legal or binding.”
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