The Cleveland Cavaliers pulled off a complicated, four-team trade to acquire Peyton Watson from the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night. Watson joins the Cavs on a new four-year, $88 million contract, cashing in on an abbreviated breakthrough season in which he averaged 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists on .491/.411/.730 shooting splits.
In addition to the Watson sign-and-trade element, the Cavs sent Max Strus to the Clippers and Tre Mann to the Wizards, with Cam Whitmore coming to Cleveland (he will be waived and stretched, per ESPN's Bobby Marks). Denver received a 2031 Cavaliers first-round pick and a 2032 Kings second-round pick to complete their end of the bargain. The biggest winner of this whole affair, however, may be a completely different team: the Los Angeles Lakers.
Lakers are poised to strike after Nuggets' Peyton Watson debacle
The Lakers were just sold (again) for a record $12.5 billion, so there are some other priorities in the clubhouse right now. But Los Angeles completed its own transformational offseason mere hours into free agency, acquiring Walker Kessler via sign-and-trade with Utah and signing Sandro Mamukelashvili, Quentin Grimes and Collin Sexton as free agents. All four figure to play major roles in the rotation, to varying degrees.
And yet, the Lakers' offseason plans are incomplete. While Watson was never really in the cards for L.A., another prominent wing on the open market — Jonathan Kuminga — very much is. Kuminga was a popular name in Cavs circles, too, but Cleveland decided to splurge on the bigger fish. And rigthfully so. Watson's defense, spot-up shooting and athleticism fill a major need on the wing.
The Lakers, however, would seemingly love to replace the outgoing Rui Hachimura with Kuminga, addressing their own shortcomings at forward. For all the baggage inherent to Kuminga, he's a former lottery pick who has flashed significant scoring potential at various points in his career. He would no doubt benefit from playing off of two elite advantage creators in Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves, in turn allowing Kuminga to focus on playing to his strengths as a spot-up scorer, slasher and play-finisher.
If the Lakers can add Kuminga on the cheap — and it's unclear who exactly is lining up to pay Kuminga anything more than a minimum or mid-level exception — it's certainly worth the swing. Los Angeles has extremely limited flexibility after the Kessler trade, so swinging for the fences at their biggest position of need is the logical next step. The free agent market beyond Kuminga is barren these days.
Beyond the Lakers' Kuminga pursuit, Denver gets worse. That helps L.A. in the standings. Denver didn't just refuse to pay Watson for tax purposes. They traded him for a couple picks in the distant future, receiving nary a player in return. Denver has slowly bled supporting talent since their championship run in 2023. The roster around Nikola Jokić has crumbled away. The Michael Porter Jr. trade aged questionably; Denver overpaid Christian Braun, the one role player that front office ponied up for, and is now suffering under the weight of its own cheapness.
The Watson sign-and-trade was not a basketball decision, but a tax decision. Teams driven by tax savings don't typically fare well, especially not in the uber-competitive Western Conference. Denver was a first-round exit last season. The roster was chronically absent athleticism and shot-making around Jokić; Watson was their best athlete, one of their best defenders, and he made 52 percent of his corner 3s, to boot.
Lakers could turn their attention to Nikola Jokić next
Nikola Jokić was eligible to sign a supermax extension this summer but declined. He can technically become a free agent after this season. While the Nuggets probably don't need to worry about their homegrown superstar, who has said nothing to indicate a desire to leave, the front office is still playing a dangerous game. Jokić was visibly exhausted and dejected during their first-round loss to Minnesota. At 31 years old, the three-time MVP only has so much left in the tank. He may tire of playing for an unserious organization.
If Jokić were ever to leave the Nuggets, it's hard not to think of the Lakers. Firstly, because the Lakers are always on the prowl for superstars. Secondly, because Jokić and Dončić are close friends. Their bond is well-documented, and the idea of the two Euro stars eventually teaming up has percolated in NBA discussion forums for a while. That has always been pure speculation, but Denver is making it hard not to wonder if Jokić will ever decide to try his luck elsewhere.
Jokić is the rare superstar who appears broadly content outside the spotlight. He legitimately cares as much about offseason horse races in Serbia as he does about competing for an NBA title. There's a decent chance he would balk at the idea of playing in L.A. just because it comes with a lot of unwelcome exposure. Then again, there has long been a special allure to playing for the Lakers. It appealed to LeBron James and to many of the greatest players in NBA history before him. The collective 'we' tend to joke about Jokić being a homebody who just shows up for work between October and June, but to act like he's not serious about basketball, serious about winning, would be blatantly false.
The chace to team up with Dončić, a buddy and still one of the greatest offensive engines in the NBA — a star guard who can ease the burden on Jokić and help carry a team through the regular season — would have appeal even if it didn't also include to joining one of the most lucrative and accomplished organizations in professional sports. The Lakers are not particularly well run under Rob Pelinka and the front office has exhausted most of their flexibility, both in terms of money and assets, but there's no question that L.A. will try to get better every offseason. It becomes a more difficult to fail in that respect if Jokić comes to town. Plus, under new owners, who's to say Pelinka is even in the front office a year from now?
The Lakers cannot trade for Jokić. They don't have the pieces. But if he decides to test the open market, L.A. can maneuver its way into a position to sign him (or sign-and-trade him, with Jokić wielding the leverage of unrestricted free agency and no shortage of interest league-wide).
This probably won't happen, but then again, the idea of Dončić ending up on the Lakers was preposterous a couple years ago. LeBron James is a Sixer now, for crying out loud. Anything is possible in This League.
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