Rob Pelinka and the Los Angeles Lakers front office have a lot of work ahead of them for the upcoming offseason. The organization will be under the microscope, needing to prove to Luka Doncic they can surround him with the needed team to contend for a championship. Luckily for them, they have a bit of a cheat sheet when it comes to one key area that needs a major overhaul.
It's no secret to anyone that the most obvious need for the Lakers is to fix the dreary state in which the center position finds itself on this roster. Out of all the holes on the Lakers, that is easily priority number one. However, the work does not and should not stop there.
Thanks to the Dallas Mavericks, it should not take a lot of time to find a formula that works. On top of gifting their superstar to Los Angeles, Dallas has already provided an ironclad blueprint as to how Doncic needs to be properly supported.
Lakers' offseason plan should be obvious
The Mavericks did a great job of having two centers on their team who meshed perfectly with the Slovenian superstar. Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II are the model for the type of centers who thrive beside Doncic.
Pelinka should have an opportunity to keep things as simple as trying to acquire Gafford via trade for one half of the solution to the Lakers' center problems. The 2025-26 season will be the last in which the athletic big man will be under contract for Dallas. If there is no intention of paying and extending Gafford, the Lakers should have every chance to just poach him away.
However, even without making that specific move, the Lakers have equally effective ways of copying the Mavericks' homework.
The Lakers need to fill the center rotation with two athletic pick-and-roll partners for Doncic on the offensive end who can also protect the rim defensively. The offensive side of the equation is obvious. Looking back at a series like the one against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2024 Western Conference Finals, the Mavericks found a lot of success with Doncic and his center partner lobbing the Wolves to death.
Defensively, the Lakers should not need much reminding as to how much they need someone down low to protect the paint. Los Angeles ranked 13th in the 2025 NBA Playoffs in terms of opponent points in the paint, surrendering 50.0 on average.
The main thing here to be mindful of is not only getting the right fits, but getting enough production out of that spot. Simply put, the Lakers need 48 minutes of quality center play on any given night. Something that was a far cry from the initial experience that Doncic had in Los Angeles.
Adding players who can serve as strong catch-and-shoot options around Doncic running the pick-and-roll at the top is a necessary adjustment for the Lakers too. Los Angeles shot the fifth-most 3-point attempts (38.8) in the postseason, but only connected at the ninth-best percentage (35.1). There are too many plays which the Lakers point guard sucks in the defense to let those easy looks from distance go to waste.
The Mavericks have already provided the guidelines for the type of roster that can get a Doncic-led team to the NBA Finals. The Lakers just have to improve upon it a touch to take that formula to a championship-winning team.