Lakers Pulled Into Mix to Reunite With Championship-Caliber Center

The Los Angeles Lakers‘ desperate need for a center and Brook Lopez‘s free agency could lead to a reunion.

NBA insider Jake Fischer linked the 37-year-old stretch five to the Lakers in the latest round of intel he dropped on “The Stein Line” newsletter on Substack.

“The Lakers have long been fans of Lopez, sources say. That doesn’t guarantee they will pursue him again, but the Lakers are indeed expected to be a player in the center market this summer,” Fischer wrote.

It is not the first time that Lopez has been linked to the Lakers.

Previously, ESPN’s front office insider Bobby Marks said the Lakers are expected to show interest in Lopez this offseason. Longtime NBA insider Gery Woelfel, who spoke to an NBA executive, also linked the Lakers to Lopez.

“There’ll be plenty of interest in him. I’m sure the Lakers have already talked to him,” an NBA executive told Woelfel.

Lopez is from California.

A homecoming and competing for a championship at the twilight of his career is a dream scenario.

The 7-foot-1 center once played for the Lakers during the 2017-18 season, the gap year between the post-Kobe Bryant and LeBron James eras.

What Brook Lopez Brings to the Table

GettyBrook Lopez celebrating a made three-pointer during an April 30 game against the Atlanta Hawks.

If the Lakers grab him, he will be an upgrade over Jaxson Hayes.

Nicknamed the “Splash Mountain” for his evolution into becoming a 3-point shooting big man, Lopez can provide spacing and rim protection for the Lakers.

Lopez averaged 13.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.9 blocks and 1.8 assists in 80 games this season for the Milwaukee Bucks, where he won a championship in 2021. He shot 37.3% from the 3-point line.

However, the Lakers will have strong competition for Lopez, who might be out of the Lakers’ price range.

Lopez has also been linked to the Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets.

Fischer added that if the Rockets are unable to retain Steven Adams, they will revisit their interest in Lopez.

The Bucks center earned $23 million this season. While he will not command the same salary, he will be worth more than the $5.2 million taxpayer midlevel exception, which the Lakers will likely have as spending power this offseason.

Rob Pelinka on Lakers’ Center Search

Lakers president Rob Pelinka made it clear that one of their top offseason priorities is to add a starting-caliber center this offseason after they traded away Anthony Davis in the Luka Dončić trade.

“This offseason, one of our primary goals is gonna be to add size in our frontcourt at the center position, and that’s just gonna be a part of the equation,” Pelinka told reporters during his end-of-season press conference alongside Lakers coach JJ Redick.

The Lakers took an early exit in the playoffs because of their lack of center beyond Hayes, whom Redick did not trust in the series against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“In terms of center traits, it would be great to have a center that was a vertical threat, a lob threat, and someone who can protect the interior defensively. I think those would be keys,” he said.

“But there are multiple types of centers that could be effective in the league. There are also spread centers that can protect the rim. We’ll look at those as well. So I wouldn’t want to limit the archetype, but we know we need a big man.”