While the Los Angeles Lakers have recently been linked to Nic Claxton of the Brooklyn Nets and the Dallas Mavericks’ Daniel Gafford, it is very possible they end up acquiring a surprise player in order to plug their big hole at the center position.
If they were to acquire Gafford, one of the advantages he would give them over almost any other center option is the fact that he spent some time playing alongside Luka Doncic, and therefore, the two would know how to maximize each other on the court.
But there is another intriguing center Doncic also played with when he was with the Dallas Mavericks who could be moved this summer. Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report proposed a trade idea that would give the Lakers Kristaps Porzingis from the Boston Celtics for Rui Hachimura, Maxi Kleber and first-round pick swaps in 2030 and 2032.
“The playoffs and last couple months of Kristaps Porziņģis’ 2024-25 campaign was completely derailed by a virus, but the healthy KP remains one of the best and most versatile big men in the league,” Bailey wrote.
“And while the Porziņģis/Luka Dončić duo didn’t quite jell with the Dallas Mavericks, both have likely been humbled a bit by the last few years. And chasing a title alongside LeBron James could have them more focused on that than on who gets the credit for the success.
“More to the point, the Los Angeles Lakers just need a real center. Porziņģis provides shot blocking, floor spacing and the occasional post-up. And he’d be a dramatic upgrade over Jaxson Hayes.”
Porzingis has always been one of the NBA’s most unique big men ever since he was the No. 4 pick in the 2015 draft out of his native Latvia. He has career averages of 19.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, and his 7-foot-2 frame makes him an imposing figure on both ends of the floor.
He can also stretch the floor — he made 41.2% of his 3-point attempts this season and has a career mark of 36.6% from that distance.
But the knock on Porzingis is that he cannot stay healthy. He hasn’t appeared in over 66 games in a season since he was a rookie, and he only played in 42 games this season. As Bailey alluded to, he was dealing with a mystery illness during the playoffs that caused his playing time to be significantly cut, and he put up just 8.1 points in 21.9 minutes a game while shooting 32% overall and 12.5% from 3-point range in the postseason.
In the end, a team such as the Lakers that not only lacks a serviceable starting center but also doesn’t have depth at that position shouldn’t take a risk on someone such as Porzingis, no matter how uniquely gifted he is.
