General Manager Rob Pelinka of the Los Angeles Lakers
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General Manager Rob Pelinka of the Los Angeles Lakers
There will be much that changes for the Los Angeles Lakers in the coming months, starting with the wrapping up of what has been a very odd 2025-26 season, one in which L.A. has a much better record than their stats would suggest, one in which LeBron James is rumored to increasingly be eyeing the exit and one in which the NBA trade deadline just passed without Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka making a significant improvement.
The Lakers are likely to stay just about in fifth place in the West the rest of the way. They are 31-19, despite having the second-worst point differential among teams over .500 (theirs is plus-0.3, while the Magic are minus-0.4). A realistic observer would note that they’re looking at a first-round playoff ouster, or a second-round stint, at best.
But yet another disappointing postseason result won’t have much impact in how the Lakers will change by this time next year. That’s because, win, lose or draw, the Lakers are expected to overhaul the team’s front office and add significant new resources to a $10 billion outfit that has for too long been run like a local family business.
Lakers Will Make ‘Significant Hires’ This Summer
Dan Woike of The Athletic highlighted the intention new owner Mark Walter of the Dodgers has when it comes to adding new faces and pieces to the Lakers’ front office this offseason, in a post on Friday.
Walter’s bid to buy the Lakers was officially accepted in late October.
Woike wrote: “The summer presents an opportunity, armed with significant cap flexibility, to start building the necessary components of a modern front office and reap early benefits. League sources say that includes significant hires to a wide range of front-office positions this summer, with the Lakers expected to model their front office after the World Series-winning Los Angeles Dodgers.”
Lakers’ Rob Pelinka: ‘There Will Be Positive Changes’
On Saturday, the Lakers’ current general manager Rob Pelinka was asked about those potential changes, and he acknowledged them, quickly adding that he (and former owner Jeanie Buss) would be spearheading those moves.
“When Mark bought the team, Jeanie and I did a really deep dive with him on, sort of, the areas he wants to grow, and move into and get aggressive,” Pelinka said. “And again, looking at the Dodgers and how they’ve built it out, it has been a great example, a North Star.
“And so, we’re still going through that process of how we’ll look in the offseason, and what additions we’ll make. But there will be some positive changes and we will build things out, again, led by myself and Jeanie and with Mark’s support.”
Speculation Buzzing About Rob Pelinka’s Future
There is some question, though, about whether the new Lakers boss will, indeed, be willing to give his support to Pelinka, who put together the Lakers team that won the 2020 NBA championship in the Covid-19 bubble season, but has seen precious little success since. Pelinka pulled off the Luka Doncic trade last winter, but that was one that dropped in his lap courtesy of the Mavericks.
If Walter is seeking to build out the Lakers front office, many around the league suspect a change at general manager might be part of the deal.
“Unless they catch fire in the second half of the year, unless they really come on and make a run in the playoffs, it’s got to be on life support, it is going to be tough to see how he survives,” one NBA source said. “If they’re in the play-in again this year, with LeBron James and Luka Doncic on your roster, it’s hard to make excuses at this point. Does he have the respect of the league? Does he have a clear vision? That’s the problem.”