Rob Pelinka, JJ Redick
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Lakers GM Rob Pelinka, and head coach JJ Redick answer questions during a press conference.
The Los Angeles Lakers are unlikely to re-sign free agents Markieff Morris and Alex Len.
According to Sports Illustrated’s Ricardo Sandoval, the Lakers could re-sign Jaxon Hayes, the other unrestricted free agent, while letting Len and Morris walk.
“The likelihood of the Lakers keeping all three players is much closer to unlikely than likely,” wrote Sandoval. “Hayes was the only one who contributed to the season, and that is because the Lakers had no choice but to turn to him after trading away Anthony Davis.
“As far as Morris and Len go, they are likely good as gone. Prior to being tagged along in the Luka Doncic trade, Morris expressed his desire to walk away from the game. He will likely take that route.”
The writer acknowledged that the Lakers desperately need size in the frontcourt after being physically bullied by the Timberwolves in their first-round playoff series.
Hayes, A Good Backup Big?
In the series against the Timberwolves, the Lakers were out-rebounded by a whopping margin of 219-195 across five games, which proved critical in the final outcome. Furthermore, the Timberwolves’ physical defense forced the Lakers into 73 turnovers, leading to many easy fast-break opportunities for Anthony Edwards and Co.
Many of those problems for the Lakers could be solved with a solid interior presence. As such, the Lakers believe Hayes should be brought back as a backup big.
“The Lakers will need a backup big as they search for a starting big on the trade market. If the Lakers wish to bring him back, Hayes could fall under that category.”
“As for Len, he was viewed as a potential key piece for the Lakers at the center position after the Mark Williams deal fell through. However, he had very little to no impact on the team.”
Lakers Need a Starting Center
While Hayes could be a solid backup option, the Purple and Gold must add a starting-caliber center ahead of the 2025-26 season. Some have suggested that the Lakers could prefer the trade route, potentially making Austin Reaves or Rui Hachimura available. The other option would be free agency, which comes with financial restrictions.
The Lakers are hard-capped and would need either LeBron James to take a pay cut, or Dorian Finney-Smith to opt out of his player option, to create cap flexibility.
According to the Los Angeles Times’ Dan Woike, the Lakers would only trade Reaves for a “foundational” center, not a role player or backup.
“[Reaves] is not viewed as “untradeable” because almost no one in the NBA is untradeable. But if the Lakers are going to trade him for a center, they’re going to want one that is foundationally important — a build-around type and not a fill-in toward the obvious need they have at center (and will need to address in other ways).
“If one of the best centers in the NBA were available, the conversations might be different, but at least now, during the first part of the offseason, that just isn’t the case,” Woike wrote in his LA Times’ Lakers newsletter on Thursday.
The 2025 NBA free agency class features plenty of centers, including Brook Lopez, Clint Capela, Myles Turner, Naz Reid, Steven Adams, Mortiz Wagner, Al Horford, Kevon Looney and Andre Drummond.