The Lakers are already on the lookout for an upgrade at the center spot. The subtraction of Anthony Davis and rescinded deal for Mark Williams left a glaring hole on the interior, which the Minnesota Timberwolves exploited at every opportunity during their first-round series triumph over this team.

Despite the season being over for both the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks, they remain one of the hottest topics in the NBA. Most people still cannot get over the Luka Doncic trade, where Dallas sent the Slovenian superstar to Hollywood for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a future first-round pick.

The latest ex-player to put his name on that notion is Rashad McCants, a four-year veteran of the league (Minnesota Timberwolves, Sacramento Kings) and a standout in college at North Carolina where he won a national championship in the 2004-05 season -- one year after James entered the NBA.

The Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2025 playoffs in five games. LeBron James averaged 25.4 points, 9.0 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.8 blocks in the series. Unfortunately, he suffered a knee injury in Game 5 after Donte DiVincenzo crashed into him.

There's no question that the Los Angeles Lakers were disappointing during the playoffs. There's a good chance that the organization expected to struggle a bit without a dominant big man to replace Anthony Davis.