6 Lakers who definitely won’t be back next season

6. Tristan Thompson

If Tristan Thompson signs with the Lakers and nobody is there to see him play, did he ever actually sign with the Lakers? LeBron’s former teammate with the Cleveland Cavaliers signed with the Lakers shortly before the playoffs began and was never meant to be someone who actually played.

That being said, Thompson was able to log some minutes in garbage time to at least say that he helped during the Lakers’ playoff push. But at the end of the day, the Lakers signed Thompson for different reasons that won’t get him a spot on the roster to start next season.

Los Angeles signed him just to have an extra body in the case of an emergency. That is always smarter than just leaving a roster spot vacant. The team also signed him because of his experience in the playoffs with LeBron, which likely played a factor in the team’s series against the Golden State Warriors.

Tristan Thompson will struggle to sign any NBA deal, let alone with the Lakers

Keep in mind that Thompson went the entire 2022-23 season unsigned until the Lakers brought him along for the playoffs. Just like with J.R. Smith in 2020, this playoff run with LA was likely Thompson’s last hoorah in the NBA.

The NBA has simply passed Thompson by and with him being far gone from his prime, there is no reason for a team to bring him in.