Lakers Trade Summary

Lakers Receive:

Nic Claxton (via BKN, under contract)

Starting-caliber rim protector and athletic roll-man

Quentin Grimes (RFA / Bird via PHI)

3&D combo guard with switchable defense

Sign-And-Trade Quentin Grimes for a 4 year contract worth $40.0M. => 2025 $9.3M • 2026 $9.9M • 2027 $10.2M • 2028 $10.4M

Guerschon Yabusele (UFA / Non-Bird via PHI)

High-motor, versatile forward with energy

Sign-And-Trade Guerschon Yabusele for a 3 year contract worth $15.0M. => 2025 $4.7M • 2026 $4.9M • 2027 $5.2M

Jake LaRavia (UFA / Bird via SAC)

Young stretch 4 with rebounding and upside

Sign to new contract

Clint Capela (UFA / Bird via ATL)

Veteran big, elite rebounder, solid paint anchor

Sign-And-Trade Clint Capela for a 3 year contract worth $12.0M. => 2025 $3.6M • 2026 $3.9M • 2027 $4.3M

Resign DFS

Re-signed free agent Dorian Finney-Smith to a 2 year contract worth $20.7M. => 2025 $10.3M • 2026 $10.3M ---

Outgoing Assets

Brooklyn Nets Receive:

• Rui Hachimura

• Maxi Kleber

• 2031 1st-Round Pick

Philadelphia 76ers Receive:

• Gabe Vincent (expiring)

Sacramento Kings Receive:

• Shake Milton (minimum signing)

• Jaxson Hayes (waive or salary match)

Reasoning for LA to get these pieces

Center Rotation Solved

Address the center rotation, or lack there of, bringing in Claxton as a starting center & Capela as backup center. The center market is very scarce and my top 3 targets were Gafford, Turner and Claxton.

Both Gafford and Turner are off-limits, either Gafford will be dealt for a guard of Giannis/KD or he will be kept by Dallas. Turner will never be traded by the Pacers. So Claxton & Capela is a realistic center rotation.

Defensive Wing/Guard Depth

Grimes gives the Lakers a 3&D off ball guard, or on ball in case its needed. Which can be ideal as 6th man. He will have diminished minutes once everyone in Philly comes back from injury.

Bench Energy & Defense

With the addition of Grimes & Yabusele theres a lot of energy from the bench and a defensive upside.

Yabusele brings high energy, versatile forward gameplay to LA. He's a great rebounder and can guard 3/4, while Grimes can guard 1/2. They are both very switchable which JJ likes.

I'm also a fan of LaRavia, I think hes a younger, cheaper (and slightly smaller) version of Kleber that is more dynamic and has a higher ceiling. Good piece for development if u ask me, I also read somewhere that Memphis regretted trading him so.

Contract Flexibility

Contract wise this would be good, Grimes is on a solid deal, LaRavia & Yabusele are on cheap deals. Meanwhile we get rid of bad, expiring contracts in Kleber & Vincent.

Reasoning for other teams to do this

Brooklyn Nets

• Stockpiling Draft Assets: By acquiring a 2031 first-round pick, the Nets add to their collection of long-term rebuilding potential.

• Roster Flexibility: Rui Hachimura and Maxi Kleber provide solid, affordable depth, experienced players who can contribute immediately without compromising future flexibility. If Nets manage to get Giannis, Rui can be a good SF to run along him. Especially if they have to give up Cam Johnson. Maxi adds veteran leadership.

Philadelphia 76ers

• Salary Cap Management: Getting Gabe Vincent’s expiring contract gives Philly some short-term salary cap flexibility. Which they absolutely need

• Roster Flexibility: Philly has an overload of G/SF, Maxey/McCain/George coming back from injury, a high likelyhood of drafting Ace Bailey. Oubre & Gordon will opt into their player options. They have low salary club options for Walker, Butler, Council & Edwards, Who all played great during the injury riddled season. Cap space wise it makes sense to move Grimes & Yabusele for an expiring contract.

Sacramento Kings

• Depth and Salary Matching: Shake Milton and Jaxson Hayes add "some" sort of depth and can be useful for salary matching in future trades. Kings desperately need a guard so keeping Milton on a low deal isn't horrible.

• Waiver Options: Hayes may be waived, freeing up cap space or opening roster spots, while Milton offers bench scoring at a low cost.

Lineups & Analysis

Starting Lineup:

• PG: Luka Doncic

• SG: Austin Reaves

• SF: LBJ

• PF: DFS

• C: Claxton

Comments: A well balanced starting 5 if Luka can get a bit better defensively and if he can have a bit better off-ball movement. Claxton is a solid rim protector and pick&roll center. DFS in the starting rotation provides switchability, LeBron playing off-ball would be good for him as he can save energy on the offensive end.

Bench Lineup:

• PG: Quentin Grimes

• SG: Dalton Knecht

• SF: Guerschon Yabusele

• PF: Jake LaRavia / Jarred Vanderbilt

• C: Clint Capela

Comments: Solid depth, way better than before. Grimes can guard 1-3, and is an efficient scorer. Knecht adds much needed 3pt shooting, LaRavia/Yabusele/Vando give you different defensive looks while providing some offense aswell while Capela anchors the paint and is a potential lob threat.

Small-Ball Lineup:

• PG: Luka Doncic

• SG: Reaves or Grimes

• SF: Yabusele or Vando

• PF: LBJ

• C: DFS

Comments: Very switchable unit, if again Luka gets a bit better defensively. LeBron can still play small-ball 5 in shorter bursts but overall i think this could be a productive lineup.

Double Big Lineup:

• PG: Luka Doncic

• SG: Reaves or Grimes

• SF: LBJ or DFS

• PF: Capela

• C: Claxton

Comments: I think this is very risky, the paint is clogged and floor spacing is tight, only to be used in VERY specific matchups and i think in general it would be better to run DFS as a 4 in this lineup than Capela.

Optional Depth

We still have our two-way players in Koloko, Jemison III, Bronny and Goodwin so they can keep developing.

We do also still have the 2025 2nd round so we could potentially go get another two way guard or forward.

Analytics

Current Bench Performance

Taking a look at the bench we had this year, there wasnt a lot.

According to Statsmuse our bench for the 24-25 regular season averaged 26.2 PPG / 5.3 APG / 12.6 RPG, for the playoffs let's not even talk about it. Pretty bad numbers if u ask me, and i think everyone would agree.

New Additions - Per Game Stats:

Claxton: 10 points / 7 boards / 2.5 stocks per 27min → 58%FG last season

Yabusele: 11 points / 6 boards / 2 assists per 27min → 50%FG last season

Grimes: 15 points / 4 boards / 3 assists per 27min (total for both DAL/PHL) → 47%FG last season

LaRavia: 7 points / 4 boards / 2 assists per per 20min (total for both MEM/SAC) → 47%FG last season

Capela: 9 points / 9 boards / 2 stocks per 21min → 56%FG last season

If Knecht makes a little jump and we can keep him, he would also be good for 10 points and maybe 5 boards per game off the bench.

Bench Comparison Chart

Comments: Player roles may vary slightly on the Lakers, but this highlights the massive bench production jump.

Final Thoughts

You're turning a top-heavy 5-man rotation into a deep, versatile 9-man unit.

• Better shooting and production from the bench

• Switchability

• Defense

• Rebounding

• Most importantly: depth

Lakers bench goes from dead weight to difference-making. If even 3–4 of these moves hit, it's a massive upgrade.