As soon as news broke of Marcus Smart signing a two-year, $11 million deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, many were quick to look at those numbers and realize the math was not adding up. Shake Milton and Jordan Goodwin have paid the price as a result.
Waiving Shake Milton was one of the least surprising moves of the offseason for the Lakers. Many had projected his non-guaranteed salary made him an obvious candidate to be cut before his looming July 20 deadline. That was indeed what happened.
However, being forced to surrender Goodwin is a different story. The Lakers guard made the most of the opportunity given to him midseason by the franchise and locked up a standard NBA contract by the end of the 2024-25 NBA season.
Unfortunately for him, the lack of substantial guaranteed salary on his deal made him a necessary casualty of crunching the numbers for Smart's contract. Arriving at that outcome was a painfully obvious path from the moment the former Washington Wizard made his commitment.
Jordan Goodwin represents the price of doing business in the NBA for the Lakers
In an ideal scenario, Goodwin is not a player the Lakers would have wanted to surrender as a cap casualty. However, having only $25,000 in guaranteed salary, according to Bobby Marks, made him stick out as an immediate solution to the Lakers' need of aligning themselves for the Smart signing.
In 29 games for Los Angeles last season, Goodwin averaged 5.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.0 steal during18.7 minutes per game. The 26-year-old shot 43.8 percent from the field and 38.2 percent from beyond the arc.
Coupling that with his impressive length and high motor on the defensive end made him a promising option to deploy alongside Luka Doncic and LeBron James, both of whom love playing with the 3-and-D mold of players. A full training camp with the Lakers would have given Goodwin the opportunity to firmly establish himself and grow with the team.
Jordan Goodwin has 4 years of service
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) July 21, 2025
He is ineligible to sign a Two-Way (3 years or less)
His contract contains no guaranteed triggers during the 2025-26 season (outside of 1/7 guaranteed date).
Waiver claim order is based on 2024-25 regular season standings in reverse…
Instead, the journeyman will once again reembark on a search for the next NBA team that can give him an opportunity to find a spot in the league. It should not be surprising to see someone swoop Goodwin off waivers after a strong showing in his sample size with the Lakers.
Los Angeles are no strangers to uncovering hidden gems and watching another team benefit from those players. This may prove to eventually be one of the scenarios down the line.