The Los Angeles Lakers are reportedly feeling “optimistic” about their new-look roster entering the 2026-27 season, specifically their versatility on offense and the array of ball-handlers and dribble-penetrators they acquired this summer.
Besides Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, the Lakers now have the likes of Quentin Grimes and Collin Sexton to initiate the offense, and even Jaden Hardy — if he makes the final roster — is adept at handling the ball as a backup point guard.
Per The Athletic’s Dan Woike, the Lakers feel very good about their roster following the team’s minicamp this past week in Las Vegas.
“While the players they replaced them with are universally less experienced with almost no postseason production, word out of the team’s veteran minicamp this past week in Las Vegas was optimistic,” Woike reported this week.
“The biggest reason was the offensive upside, the number of players on the team who can punish a defender off the dribble having multiplied this summer.”
Lakers Roster Loaded With Ball-Handlers
Further to Woike’s point, Grimes averaged 15.7 points in his one-and-a-half seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers, operating as a catch-and-shoot threat and a guard who can break the defense off the dribble. Routinely, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse put the ball in his hand and let him go to work, especially when Tyrese Maxey was on the bench. Similarly, Collin Sexton has blossomed into a solid scorer who thrives both on and off the ball. The Alabama product averaged 18.3 points on 39% shooting from deep in his eight seasons before arriving in LA.
The Lakers realize that the likes of Grimes and Sexton will relieve a lot of pressure from Doncic and Reaves, and Sandro Mamukelashvili is a dynamic, new offensive weapon.
“It’s a crucial skill on the Lakers — the spacing that shooting can create and the overreactions Doncic and Austin Reaves induce with their ability to put defenses into scramble-and-recovery mode,” Woike added.
Lakers Roster Nearly Finalized
Crucially, the new additions will try to fill the void left by LeBron James and Luke Kennard — the two primary ball-handlers during the Lakers’ playoff series win against the Houston Rockets when Doncic and Reaves (for the most part) were sidelined.
“[Luke] Kennard instantly boosted the Lakers’ ceiling with his knack for creating and putting teams in the blender, and the Lakers can now do so with Quentin Grimes, Collin Sexton and even Sandro Mamukelashvili,” Woike stressed.
“It was one of the big takeaways for the people who watched the Lakers go through workouts in Las Vegas.”
With the offensive side of the ball no longer a concern, the Lakers continue to tweak the roster to improve their perimeter defense. To do so, they recently signed Zaire Williams and Matisse Thybulle and continue to pursue Jonathan Kuminga.
The updated new-look Lakers roster can be seen below. JJ Redick’s team can carry only 15 players into the new season, meaning a few more moves are to be expected.
- Luka Doncic
- Austin Reaves
- Adou Thiero
- Bronny James
- Jarred Vanderbilt
- Cameron Carr
- Walker Kessler
- Quentin Grimes
- Jaden Hardy
- Dalton Knecht
- Kevon Looney
- Jake LaRavia
- Sandro Mamukelashvili
- Collin Sexton
- Ziaire Williams
- Matisse Thybulle
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Lakers Get ‘Optimistic’ Roster Update Amid Thybulle Signing, Kuminga Pursuit appeared first on HEAVY.