Luke Kennard leaving Lakers for Suns in free agency

Luke Kennard won’t return to the Lakers for the 2026-27 season.

The free agent guard is leaving the Lakers for the Suns in free agency after just half a season with the Lakers.

Kennard, who was an unrestricted free agent, agreed to a two-year, $13 million deal that was first reported by ESPN.

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One of the league’s best shooters since entering the league out of Duke in 2017, Kennard led the league in 3-point shooting percentage (47.8%) for the third time in his career.

Luke Kennard won’t return to the Lakers for the 2026-27 season. AP

Luke Kennard reacts to a foul call. Getty Images

After the Lakers acquired Kennard from the Hawks for Gabe Vincent and a 2032 second-round pick, Kennard averaged 9 points (44.8% shooting on 3-pointers), 2.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 32 regular season games.

The highlight of his regular season with the Lakers was, after a brief shooting slump, knocking down the game-winning 3-pointer against the Magic on March 21 to give the Lakers their season-best ninth-straight win.

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Kennard’s production ticked up when star guards Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves suffered regular season-ending injuries in early April.

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He averaged 14.5 points, 7.8 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 steals over the Lakers’ next four games as a primary ball handler.

And in the playoffs, he continued to step up, leading the Lakers with a team-best 21 points in their Game 1 victory over the Rockets in the first round, scoring 23 points in their Game 2 win and recording 14 points and 6 assists in the Game 3 victory.

Kennard averaged 12.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3 assists in six-game opening round series victory over the Rockets, and 11.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists in the Lakers’ playoff run that ended…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/luke-kennard-leaving-lakers-suns-020528656.html

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Publish date : 2026-07-01 02:05:00

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