There you have it. The Los Angeles Lakers finally have their 15-man roster for 2026-27 finalized after Rob Pelinka decided to call it quits on the Dalton Knecht experiment.
With that final bow on the offseason, and the first regular season game just around the corner, it is worth reflecting on how the Lakers did in their notable offseason overhaul around Luka Doncic. Let us take a look at the best move and worst moves, and offer one final grade to summarize the current views about how Los Angeles held up.
Best move: Signing Ziaire Williams to a one-year, minimum contract
There are a number of different directions to go with what could qualify as the best move of the summer. Despite the steep price, Walker Kessler's addition has a clear case. Drafting Cameron Carr could qualify as the top transaction in the long run.
In the here and now, let us give it to finding a player who is building his case as a legit starting forward while being on a one-year minimum. Ziaire Williams has fit in great ahead of the regular season. From here, the new Lakers forward just needs to keep backing up the hype.
Williams is an effective defender. The initial glimpses of his offense in the preseason also look better than some of the early projections. The hope for those invested in seeing the Lakers succeed will continue to be that Ziaire proves himself as someone who every other team overlooked.
Worst move: Betting on Kevon Looney as the primary backup center
To be clear, Sandro Mamukelashvili will be the first big man off the bench on a regular basis for the Lakers. However, when the team is specifically looking for someone to come in with the skill set of a classic center, Kevon Looney is going to get the call.
The Lakers chose to move on from Deandre Ayton at that spot when they were handed a couple of second-round picks for him. Given their lack of draft capital, that much was fair enough. However, the downgrade to Looney is clear.
Looney is an excellent veteran to have in the locker room. The three-time NBA champion is going to be a stabilizing force in that regard. Expectations about his on-court production should be modest, at best, by comparison.
Lakers' overall offseason grade: B
The Lakers made a lot of big bets this summer, and there should be cautious hope that several of them can turn out exactly how they envisioned it. There was a clear plan after LeBron James decided to rule out a return to Los Angeles. It was executed reasonably well.
At worst, the summer can be viewed in a positive light, because they secured a long-term starter in Kessler. If a few extra things break their way, their modest grade of a B can quickly become an A- or perhaps even better.
A lot of it will hinge on guys like Ziaire, Quentin Grimes, Collin Sexton, Matisse Thybulle, etc. truly panning out. Should that be the case, the reevaluation will be positive. Even if it does not quite work out that way, the drop-off would not be truly severe.
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