After landing Walker Kessler from the Jazz in a massive all-in trade, the Lakers’ front office kept working in free agency, adding Quentin Grimes, Collin Sexton, and Sandro Mamukelashvili, who was widely expected to sign, per previous reports. None of these moves involve another star, but together they paint a clear picture of how the roster is being built around Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and now Kessler in town.
Grimes is signing a four-year, $60.0 million deal, closing the book on his run in Philadelphia after playing on his QO last season. The 76ers had traded guard Jared McCain to create extra room to sign him, but after signing Dean Wade to a four-year deal, Grimes moved away as an unrestricted free agent.
Sexton is joining on a two-year, $19.0 million contract, giving the Lakers another guard who can get downhill and score efficiently after a Hornets-Bulls stint last season. Mamukelashvili had already agreed to a four-year, $52.0 million deal after opting out of his $2.8 million deal with the Raptors, adding a stretch big man to play behind Kessler.
With these four moves, the Lakers are now projected to be at $14.1 million under the first apron to resign their own free agents, likely Rui Hachimura, as the team still could open more salary if able to dump Ayton, Knecht, or LaRavia in a trade.
The logic here is fairly straightforward. The Kessler trade solved rim protection and rebounding and gave the Lakers a legitimate pick-and-roll center, but it didn’t address shot creation, since Kessler is a play-finisher by nature. The roster still needed players who could make shots, attack closeouts, and hold things together whenever Doncic or Reaves needed rest.
Grimes fills that need first. He averaged 13.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.3 assists last season with the 76ers, shooting 45.0% from the field, though his three-point number sat at a modest 33.4%. Even with that shooting dip, he brings a strong two-way presence, someone who can defend, keep the ball moving, and contribute without needing heavy usage on a $15.0 million yearly salary.
Sexton brings a different scoring dimension entirely. He averaged 15.4 points, 2.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists across 68 games last season, shooting 48.5% from the field and 40.1% from three, while finishing 64.7% of his attempts from within three feet of the basket, a number that stands out given how much the Lakers needed another guard capable of consistently getting into the paint.
For $19.0 million over two seasons, that’s a solid addition at $9.5 million per year. Sexton isn’t a true point guard, and there are stretches where he leans too heavily into scoring at the expense of everything else, but on this particular roster, that tendency actually works in the Lakers’ favor.
Mamukelashvili rounds out the frontcourt with some much-needed balance. He put up 11.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.9 assists last season with the Raptors, shooting an efficient 52.3% from the field and 38.9% from three, numbers that make him an appealing stretch forward for a team that just committed heavily to a non-shooting center in Kessler. With a $13 million salary next season, he’ll have hefty expectations as a potential Rui Hachimura replacement.
Taken together, this offseason now has a defined shape. Rather than trying to replace LeBron James with a single move, the front office is spreading his production, his scoring pressure, and his overall lineup value across several different pieces. Kessler brings the defense, Grimes brings two-way guard play, Sexton brings scoring punch off the bench, and Mamukelashvili brings shooting up front.
The Lakers are basically betting that Grimes can take the Marcus Smart role, with a good shooting reputation to impact the game from outside like Luke Kennard. Sexton is taking up that bench scoring guard the Lakers didn’t have last season, and Mamu is set to play the Hachimura role.
It isn’t a flawless plan. The Lakers still lack size on the wing, and it remains to be seen whether the defense can hold up with Doncic and Reaves anchoring so much of the offensive workload. Bronny James could see an increase in his minutes this season, as the team will need a high-motor player ready to impact with defense, spot-up shooting, and energy.
Still, this reads as a deliberate, well-organized approach rather than a scattered collection of names. Doncic now has a rim-running center, a two-way wing defender, a downhill scoring guard, and a stretch big man surrounding him, which is a far more balanced roster than what the Lakers had heading into free agency.
There’s likely more to come, but between the Kessler trade and these three signings, the direction is easy to see. The Lakers are building their offense around Doncic, adding enough shooting to keep windows open, and trusting Kessler to cover for whatever defensive gaps remain.
