Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals painted a grim picture for how teams without floor-spacing bigs will fare against Victor Wembanyama in the playoffs. The dots have thus inevitably been connected in regard to the Los Angeles Lakers needing to reconsider their widely rumored strategy of acquiring screen-setters and rim runners to complement Luka Doncic.
Though there may come a time when the Lakers are the right big man away from holding their own against Wembanyama in the playoffs, they must bypass fear and first actually build a contender.
Wembanyama gave 29 teams something to think about with an otherworldly Game 1. He posted 41 points, 24 rebounds, three assists, three blocks, and a steal, shooting 14-of-25 from the field and effectively playing Isaiah Hartenstein off the court. The $87 million center played just 12 minutes as the Oklahoma City Thunder fell 122-115 in double overtime.
John Hollinger of The Athletic wrote a rather scathing review of Game 1, pointing to how Hartenstein is the latest casualty of Victor Wembanyama turning non-shooters into non-factors.
“Against Wembanyama, two minutes into the first game of this series, the 64-win, defending champion Thunder realized that one of their elite performers was unplayable. Hartenstein can do a lot of things, but he can’t space the floor, and — as the Minnesota Timberwolves and Portland Trail Blazers already found out — that is basically fatal for a big man playing against Wembanyama, who will just sit in the paint and destroy an entire offense by himself.”
Though Hollinger has a point, the Lakers can't abandon the strategy of targeting screen-setters and rim-runners just because of one matchup they may or may not have in the postseason.
Lakers need to build a great team before they worry about tweaking it
Dan Woike and Sam Amick of The Athletic recently reported that the Lakers promised Doncic that they would build a roster in the image of the 2023-24 Dallas Mavericks team that he led to the NBA Finals. That would inevitably include bringing in players who are comparable to centers Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II.
Considering Gafford and Lively are interior-based big men who lack a consistent jumper but thrive as rim runners and rim protectors, prioritizing said archetype would clash with Hollinger's takeaway.
The harsh reality of where the Lakers are entering the 2026 offseason, however, is that the only player who has both a guaranteed salary and a secure spot in the rotation is Doncic. Austin Reaves and Marcus Smart have player options, and at least the former is expected to return, but nothing is set in stone.
The only five other players with a guaranteed salary for the 2026-27 season are Bronny James, Dalton Knecht, Jake LaRavia, Adou Thiero, and Jarred Vanderbilt—all of whom averaged 10.7 minutes per game or less during the 2026 NBA Playoffs.
Lakers are building from square one—and can't skip steps
Hyperbolic as it may sound, the Lakers are effectively starting from scratch with a new franchise player. Thankfully, they have the No. 25 overall selection in the 2026 NBA Draft and a small surplus of cap space. With those resources, Los Angeles must help Doncic play his preferred style.
If that means taking a chance on interior-based big men who could struggle against Wembanyama, then the Lakers must take that chance—especially with 28 other opponents to consider.
That starts with addressing critical and longstanding flaws such as lackluster rim protection and the absence of an ideal pick-and-roll target. It'd be a dream scenario to find a player who checks those boxes and spaces the floor, but if that goal can't be met, then the Lakers must pivot.
Refusing to do so and instead scoffing at the absence of perfection would simply delay the process of giving Doncic the help he needs to take the Lakers to a higher tier of competition.
Furthermore, the Lakers have already seen how limited their potential is when they don't have an ideal interior anchor. Pretending they haven't had this experience just because the current upgrades aren't perfect matches for Wembanyama will simply put the Lakers in an endless tailspin.
Instead, the Lakers must be cautious with contracts as they take a necessary chance on a big man who may ultimately come up short against Wembanyama, but could still elevate Los Angeles until then.
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