When it came down to getting a deal done for Dorian Finney-Smith, the Lakers didn’t want to commit long-term money to the 3-and-D wing.
The Lakers lost a key rotation player this summer with Dorian Finney-Smith reportedly heading to the Rockets.
While this move is a tough pill to swallow, it wasn’t unexpected. Los Angeles reportedly wanted to retain the 3-and-D wing, but eventually it became clear he was going to leave. With Houston offering a four-year, $53 million deal, it seemed from the outside that those were numbers the Lakers were not going to reach with their offer.
According to Dan Woike of The Athletic, the Lakers only offered DFS a two-year contract and didn’t want to make any commitments beyond that.
The Lakers, according to team sources, offered two years against the four-year, $53 million deal he got with Houston because they wanted to maintain as much future flexibility as possible to be in position to land a superstar down the line to pair with Dončić.
This also aligns with the reporting by Dave McMenamin of ESPN, who indicated that the Lakers are looking to preserve cap space for 2027.
These are the tough decisions President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka gets paid to make. Losing DFS makes the Lakers worse, and finding a 3-and-D wing as good as him is a tough task to accomplish.
However, if there is a hard line of not giving money to non-superstars beyond two seasons, then losing a good player is the cost of executing a vision.
The Lakers are constantly under pressure to compete, and this season is no exception. They have to demonstrate to Luka Dončić that this franchise is where he should commit, and even LeBron James’ agent, Rich Paul, is putting pressure on the Lakers front office to build a winner.
Losing DFS doesn’t get you closer to the ultimate goal, but signing Jake LaRavia is a good step towards improving the roster.
LaRavia has reportedly agreed to a two-year, $12 million deal with the Lakers, which aligns with the team’s strategy of not committing long-term money to players.
DFS is a great piece, but not the missing one. His departure will not make or break the team, just like his staying wouldn’t have secured the Lakers as legit title contenders. In an ideal world, DFS stays with the Lakers, they still find ways to improve for the present while setting up the future for Luka as the main star.
However, this is a tax apron world, and the Lakers are living in it.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.