5 Lakers who are in their last month under contract with the team

By Jason Reed | Mar 20, 2023

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 07: Troy Brown Jr. #7 and Dennis Schroder #17 of the Los Angeles Lakers talk during a 112-103 Lakers win over the Memphis Grizzlies at Crypto.com Arena on March 07, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2023 NBAE. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

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(Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images) – Lonnie Walker IV Lakers /

2. Lonnie Walker IV

The Los Angeles Lakers signed Lonnie Walker IV with the Taxpayer’s Mid-Level Exception last summer and early on in the season, it looked like it was going to be the steal of the summer. Malik Monk was a massive steal for the purple and gold the previous season and Walker looked to be the latest example of that.

However, while he was putting together the best individual numbers of his career, the numbers under the hood were not great. The Lakers were legitimately worse off when Walker was on the court, mainly because of his poor defense.

When Walker missed extended time with an injury it became clear that he was not this pivotal member of the rotation that fans thought he was. Suddenly, the conversation around Walker changed.

With the new-look roster after the trade deadline, Walker has not had as big of a role on the team. If the Lakers were to make the playoffs this season it is hard to see Walker getting any minutes in the rotation with how Ham has played things out.

It is almost a guarantee to say that this is going to be Walker’s last month as a member of the purple and gold. Perhaps he can put together some miraculous playoff run to save his job in LA but even then, another team will come in and overpay for him.

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