Even with LeBron James returning, this is not a championship-caliber roster. That was proven over and over again during the 2023-24 season.
Most figured that Los Angeles would go big-game hunting on the trade block. It was linked to Dejounte Murray before he was sent from the Atlanta Hawks to the New Orleans Pelicans. The Lakers were also in on a sign-and-trade for Klay Thompson prior to him landing with the defending Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks.
So, where do the Lakers go from here? The status quo obviously is not going to work moving forward. And with King James hitting the twilight of his career, there is a certain level of pressure being felt by the front office.
We now have somewhat of an interesting update on this. According to Brian Lewis of the NY Post, the Lakers are one of three teams in on underrated Brooklyn Nets wing Cameron Johnson.