There were four major additions for the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2025 offseason. That group consisted of Marcus Smart, Deandre Ayton, Adou Thiero, and Jake LaRavia. How many of those players stand out as immediate contributors who were also built to last around Luka Doncic?
Marcus Smart turned out to be the best newcomer of the bunch. However, the former Defensive Player is also 32 years old. His window to be around and impactful on the court during the Doncic era has a clear limit on it that is ticking away by the day.
Adou Thiero should be a guy who can be accounted for in the Lakers' plans down the line. The athletic freak needs time to develop before that can be possible. That made his role with this year's group in Los Angeles mostly an afterthought during the campaign that just passed.
The Deandre Ayton experience was a frustrating rollercoaster ride throughout the entire season. Jake LaRavia disappeared during the NBA Playoffs.
None of the players brought in truly satisfied both the now and the future. Some barely satisfied either. The Lakers should not settle yet again in the 2026 offseason. Their new arrivals need to be capable of fitting both desirables.
Lakers must be selfish and want it all with their new additions for Luka Doncic
Many were happy to chalk up 2025-26 as a gap year for the Lakers. Imagine how much different things could have been if Rob Pelinka and the front office did not operate with that kind of mindset.
The Lakers caught fire in March and looked poised to be an actual threat in the NBA Playoffs despite the very clear and obvious imperfections of the roster. How much better could they have been if their MVP-level superstar had a better-equiped supporting cast?
Everyone knows the injuries to Doncic and Austin Reaves eventually ended up crushing the Lakers' momentum. Championship dreams turned into a game of survival. It was an uphill battle that wound up with a still battered Los Angeles team getting bounced in the second round.
Let's flirt with some hypotheticals here. Does Doncic still get hurt if the Lakers did not demand a career high usage percentage of 38.1 from him in 2025-26?
That is impossible to answer concretely, but it is worth pondering considering that Doncic's 2024 playoff run, the deepest of his career, involved one of the lowest usage percentages of any of his postseason stints. Only 2025 (32.4) came in lower than 2024 (33.4).
Putting the ball in Luka's hands is always a good idea considering how elite of an offensive player he is. That does not mean neglecting his supporting cast to the point of Luka being overburdened. There is a fine line of satisfying both.
Doncic needs those support guys in the building this season. They need to be guys who can help him as soon as next season, and are capable of sticking around for the long haul. The Lakers would be wasting the gift of having a top-five player in the world otherwise.
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