One option for the Lakers center position I hven't heard a lot about is Gafford.

The money right now makes sense since he only makes 14M this year, however, he has stated he wants to be paid starter money from next season onwards.

Dallas probably will not want to give him that kind of money with Cooper Flagg probably coming in and one of the best centers in the league already on roster in AD. They also save some money (3M) by takin in Gabe Vincent. He isn't quite the player he was in that Miami Heat team that got to the finals two years ago, but he could still contribute to an NBA roster. With Kyrie out for a big part of the season, I see him being a contributor for Dallas next year. Dallas also get a future 2031 first round pick from the Lakers in this deal. Bottom line for the Mavericks, you get a guard that can be useful for you while Kyrie is out and save some money for a player you were otherwise not gonna resign.

For the Lakers, this is a match made in heaven. Gafford has played with Luka already and it resulted in an NBA finals run. They compliment each other really well and he is not a center who is going to get the ball out of Luka's or Lebron's hands. He runs the P&R and is also a solid defender, providing rim protection (7.1 B%).

Overall one of my favorite options for the Lakers that has gone a bit under the radar.