The Los Angeles Lakers need to have a big offseason after getting bounced in the first round of the NBA playoffs this season.
Many Lakers fans didn’t expect that a team led by Luka Doncic and LeBron James would lose early in the playoffs, despite the team having a gaping hole at center.
Los Angeles didn’t solve the issue during the season, which haunted them in the playoffs as Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert recorded 27 points and 24 rebounds in the series-clinching Game 5 win.
That being said, the Lakers should be all over the center market this offseason. Luckily for them, Los Angeles should have some options available. One of those options includes reuniting with a former Lakers big man.
Lakers Reportedly Gearing Up to Pursue Brook Lopez in Free Agency
According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, the Lakers are expected to pursue veteran center Brook Lopez in free agency.
There’s growing belief that Brook Lopez will leave Milwaukee this summer, and the Lakers are gearing up to pursue him, per @JakeLFischer
“This time around, however, numerous rival teams are bracing for the center-craving Los Angeles Lakers to make a run at luring Lopez away… pic.twitter.com/TFO0UkNKyG
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 29, 2025
Lakers fans likely wouldn’t be fond of the idea of bringing Lopez back, given that he’s 37 years old. And fans want to see the team get younger and more athletic, especially in the middle.
Lopez has spent the last seven years with the Bucks after playing one season with the Lakers in 2017-18. During his lone season with the Purple and Gold, he posted 13.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in 23.4 minutes per game (74 games).
However, since leaving Los Angeles, Lopez has become one of the better defensive centers in the Association with the Bucks.
The veteran big man finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2022-23 and made first team All-Defensive. Lopez also made the second team All-Defensive in 2019-20.
Last season with the Bucks, the ex-Laker big man averaged 14.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game. He also shot 50.9 percent from the field and 37.3 percent from beyond the arc on 5.3 attempts per game.
Lopez wouldn’t be the perfect complement to Doncic as he’s not a rim runner. However, he does a good job protecting the rim, posting a 114 DRtg (defensive rating). It will be interesting to see how the market evaluates Lopez, Clint Capela, and the other available centers.
That said, the Lakers must come away with one of those options, as they can afford not to have an adequate center rotation in a tough Western Conference.
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