When the Los Angeles Lakers miraculously acquired Luka Doncic in February 2025, everyone around the NBA envisioned that the Lakers would soon be perennial contenders. The following season-and-a-half with Luka produced two postseason appearances, but LA -- over three transaction cycles during that span -- didn't quite have the assets or cap space to craft a true championship roster around Doncic.
That was all supposed to change this summer. With LeBron James coming off the books, Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka was supposed to officially begin the Luka Era by completely retooling the Lakers. This was supposed to be the path through which LA would catch up to the young (and still improving) Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs.
The reality of the situation has turned out different than all of the above "supposed" outcomes. LeBron might be on his way back (not on a bargain), Austin Reaves is owed a near-max deal, and Pelinka sort of must go out and spend a chunk of change on an upgrade at center (Deandre Ayton failed the audition in 2025-26).
This all makes it seem like the Lakers may only marginally improve this summer, which in and of itself wouldn't be the end of the world. But when you look at the other West powers, it actually is the end of the world. The Spurs are in the NBA Finals, and they are impossibly young. The Thunder, meanwhile, are looking ahead to an NBA Draft in which they might actually get their hands on another top-end, franchise-player-type talent.
The Thunder might end up with a top-10 draft pick (oh no!)
According to new piece from NBA insider Anthony Slater and Tim MacMahon, the Thunder are toying with the idea of packaging multiple of their picks in the upcoming draft to move way up.
"The Thunder, who own the 12th, 17th and 37th picks in the upcoming draft, are expected to be active in trade discussions during the draft," Slater and MacMahon reported. "League sources said they've had exploratory discussions with teams in the top 10 about what it could take to move up."
It feels like OKC is always going to be three steps ahead of the Lakers
The Thunder are already significantly more talented than the Lakers. They're also younger, more athletic, and deeper. The thought of OKC adding another blue-chip prospect to their depth chart is nothing short of depressing for Lakers fans, as OKC is bound to grab a player who is more or less ready to contribute right away (especially if they move up into the highest plane of the lottery).
Is this summer about to get really sad and dark for the Lakers? This was always supposed to be the offseason in which LA gained some ground on the Thunder and Spurs. Instead, it looks like those two franchises are surging ahead while the Lakers make small improvements. Sigh.
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