The Los Angeles Lakers have a new face in town after wrapping up the 2025 NBA draft. Using the power of money to trade up from No. 55 to No. 36, the Lakers used their second-round selection to take Arkansas forward Adou Thiero, who could become a key piece of head coach JJ Redick's lineup as early as next season.
The Lakers must now turn their attention to the NBA offseason, which will include plenty of opportunities to upgrade the roster with a trade or two. It's the best path for L.A. to take to find another star to play alongside Luka Doncic and LeBron James.
The good news for general manager Rob Pelinka is that a huge trade opportunity is sitting right in front of him following the NBA draft.
Lakers Have Perfect Opportunity to Trade for Jazz G Collin Sexton
The Lakers already have a dangerous backcourt with Doncic and Austin Reaves handling the brunt of responsibilities. Having said that, another threat would take the team's guard situation to new heights, which is why the Lakers should contact the Utah Jazz about veteran guard Collin Sexton.
The 2025-26 campaign is the last on the four-year, $70.9 million contract Sexton signed with the Jazz back in 2022. It's far from guaranteed that he'll want to sign an extension after Utah went 17-65 last season, meaning Jazz general manager Justin Zanik could be open to striking a deal.
Sexton is a reliable shooting threat whose game could be taken to the next level by playing with top-tier facilitators like James and Doncic. The former Alabama product is coming off a 2024-25 performance with the Jazz that saw him average 18.4 points on .480/.406/.865 splits in 63 games, all while also putting up 4.2 assists, 2.7 rebounds, and 0.7 steals.
Sexton also has experience playing both guard roles, meaning he can rotate in and out of shooting and playmaking responsibilities. It's hard not to like the idea of lineup featuring Doncic and Sexton in the backcourt, James and Reaves as the forwards, and soon-to-be-added center the Lakers find, either via trade or free agency.
Sexton will carry an $18.9 million cap hit next season, which the Lakers can easily match in a trade. Rui Hachimura is making $18.2 million on his own, while L.A. can also combine contracts from the likes of Jarred Vanderbilt ($11.5 million), Gabe Vincent ($11.5 million), and Maxi Kleber ($11 million) to make things work.
Throwing a future draft pick into the mix could be all Los Angeles needs after that.
The Lakers are in dire need of a big splash after their early playoff exit, and adding Sexton early this offseason is one way to quickly vault them back into the championship contender conversation.