The Lakers have placed the future of their franchise in Luka Dončić’s hands after LeBron James’s departure, but the move has raised serious questions about whether the team made the right bet. Just 14 months after buying the Lakers, Dodgers owner Mark Walter agreed to sell the franchise at a staggering $12. 5 billion valuation to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner. The ownership transition comes at a turbulent moment, with the Lakers entering a new era built entirely around Dončić.
The Lakers overpaid to keep Austin Reaves, signing him to a four-year contract worth roughly $180–185 million, because losing him for nothing would have been worse. They also paid a heavy price for center Walker Kessler, sending Utah two unprotected first-round picks plus swaps in 2028 and 2030, and committing about $130 million over four years to the 7-foot-2 big man. The Kessler deal was driven by necessity. The Lakers had no size, and with Victor Wembanyama looming over the Western Conference, that weakness threatened to become fatal.
But the deeper concern is defensive identity. With Dončić as the centerpiece, the Lakers face the question of whether the offense can move five players or whether everything will funnel through his ball dominance. Dončić is undeniably talented, but his last two seasons have been interrupted by injuries, his defense remains a major criticism, and his leadership compared with the standard LeBron set in Los Angeles is still a debate. The Lakers finished 53-29 last season and reached the Western Conference semifinals, but Dončić’s hamstring injury helped end that run in a sweep against Oklahoma City.
The uncomfortable pattern surrounding Dončić is hard to ignore. Dallas had him as its centerpiece when Mark Cuban sold the Mavericks. Rick Carlisle, a championship-winning coach, left during Dončić’s third season. And eventually, the Mavericks traded him.
None of that proves Dončić caused any of it. But the pattern is striking, and now the Lakers have undergone another ownership earthquake just months into the Dončić era. LeBron didn’t just produce for the Lakers. He stabilized the entire ecosystem around him.
Dončić offers something different—an extraordinary offensive engine who still has to prove he can turn individual brilliance into sustained team success. The financial commitment is enormous. Dončić is scheduled for roughly $49. 8 million in 2026-27, with Reaves at about $41.
2 million and Kessler at around $30. 2 million. That’s more than $120 million tied up in three players, leaving little margin for error. The Lakers don’t have to regret acquiring Dončić, Reaves, or Kessler.
But they absolutely have to get the next part right. If Dončić dominates the ball, the defense collapses, the supporting cast stagnates, and injuries continue to interrupt his seasons, the Lakers could waste the most valuable years of a generational player. The bet isn’t whether Dončić is great. He is.
The bet is whether the Lakers can build a championship machine around him.
