Earlier this summer, star guard Luka Doncic made a long-term commitment to the Los Angeles Lakers organization. He agreed to an incredibly lucrative three-year, $165 million deal to keep him under contract with the storied franchise for the foreseeable future.
Following Doncic’s expression of allegiance to the Lakers, the team has apparently altered its stance on roster improvements. According to The Athletic’s Dan Woike, Los Angeles had avoided scenarios that would involve taking on contracts that spanned beyond the coming season, but the team’s priorities are now “more aggressive.”
“According to team and league sources, the Lakers’ stance on roster improvements heading into this season has shifted because of the start of this new chapter together,” Woike wrote.
“While the Lakers had resisted scenarios in which the team would take on contracts that lasted beyond the 2025-26 season earlier this summer, Doncic’s multi-year commitment has nudged LA’s priorities in more aggressive directions.”
The Slovenian’s future in Los Angeles was somewhat murky before he agreed to an extension with the team back in August. Doncic originally had a player option for the 2026-27 campaign. He could have eventually declined that option to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2026.
That would have been a nightmare scenario for a Los Angeles squad that traded an arm and a leg to acquire him leading up to the February trade deadline. Fortunately for the Lakers, that scenario was avoided.
Doncic is the engine that makes L.A.’s offense go with his gifts as both a scorer and playmaker, and how the team fares in the coming season will hinge largely on his play. With Doncic now expected to be in the fold for a long time, L.A. projects to be competitive for years to come, which explains the apparent stance change detailed by Woike.
It’s also important that the Lakers make the most of Doncic’s prime and try to contend for titles year after year with the generational talent in the fold. With the right core around him, Doncic has already proven that he can lead a team to championship territory. After all, he helped the Dallas Mavericks make a surprise run to the 2024 NBA Finals.
Hopefully, the Lakers will soon go out and act in a way that supports Woike’s report definitively by acquiring an impactful player who is under contract beyond the coming campaign.