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The Lakers have been searching for an elite big man for quite some time. Back in 2025, when Anthony Davis was still on the roster, he made it clear he wanted the Lakers to trade for a center.
He ended up being traded for Luka Dončić, but the team still needed someone to play the five alongside their new superstar. They ended up trading for Mark Williams, but the deal was rescinded.
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Since then, the Lakers have tried to play Jaxson Hayes as their starter, and then brought in Deandre Ayton. While each player has found some success, neither has been good enough, which is why recent reports that Dončić wants the Lakers to acquire an A-list center come as no surprise.
The options for the Lakers at this point are to try to trade for a big, sign one via free agency, or select one in the upcoming 2026 NBA Draft.
In Jake Fisher’s piece for The Stein Line released on Saturday, he discussed a pair of centers the Lakers could be interested in drafting with the No. 25 pick.
The Lakers at No. 25 are another team rivals are projecting will land on a big man. Depending on what happens with teams above them, they might be presented with the opportunity to draft Kentucky big man Jayden Quaintance, who once figured to go much higher but has inspired trepidation among some NBA teams with a slow recovery from a torn ACL in February 2025.
Another big man who’s been connected to the Lakers is UConn center Tarris Reed Jr., who I’ve also heard has interest from teams as high as the late teens.
Jayden Quaintance doesn’t have much college tape to evaluate. Due to his ACL injury, he only played in four games for Kentucky during his sophomore season. As a freshman at Arizona State, he played in 24 games, averaging 9.4 points and 7.9 rebounds. In six of those contests, he had a double-double, with his most impressive performance coming against Massachusetts, where he scored 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in his team’s 78-62 win.
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Quaintance is considered an elite rim protector and averaged 2.6 blocks per game at Arizona State.
Given the seriousness of his injury, he could be available for the Lakers at…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/lakers-connected-jayden-quaintance-tarris-214500131.html
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Publish date : 2026-06-21 21:45:00
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