1. What is Kyle Kuzma likely to get paid?
Let’s get one thing out of the way: almost every NBA player belongs somewhere on a roster, provided that they come for the right price.
In his three years in the NBA, Kyle Kuzma has certainly shown he belongs in the league, so I’m not completely against the idea of extending his contract if it comes at a reasonable cost.
However, my concern is that when the time comes to put pen to paper, Kuzma will demand a very large sum of money and the Lakers will comply with his wishes.
A recent Laker who is often compared to Kyle Kuzma is Julius Randle, and the contract he signed with the New Orleans Pelicans in 2018-19 (2 years, $17,714,050 with a player option for the second year) is a great comparison to what his perceived market-value may be.
In fact, Kuzma’s career numbers through his first three full seasons in the NBA (16.0 PPG / 5.5 RPG / 1.9 APG on .449/.331/.732 shooting splits) are more impressive than Randle’s were over his first three seasons (13.6 PPG / 8.6 RPG / 2.6 APG on .493/.257/.719 shooting splits).
Therefore, it wouldn’t surprise me if he demanded something similar to what Kentavious Caldwell-Pope signed for (3 years / $40 million), or even what Randle wound up signing with the Knicks for last offseason (3 years / $62.1 million).
In reality, when reigning 6th man of the year Montrezl Harrell signs for 2 years / $19 million and is only a year older than Kuz, the Lakers should walk away if the extension demands reach the 8 figure per-year mark, assuming his on-court play remains at a similar level.
Kuzma’s play on both ends of the court in his career to date, and his fit with the Lakers moving forward, simply don’t align with the money he’s likely to expect.