Sporting a 14-4 record and occupying the Western Conference’s No. 2 seed, the Los Angeles Lakers are off to probably the best 2025-26 season start by record they could reasonably expect.
But LA has two clear roster weaknesses that could impede a deep playoff run: defending downhill point guards (former Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart does his best, but at 31 he’s past his athletic prime) and covering big wings.
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While offloading 21-time All-NBA power forward LeBron James for a package headlined by a defensive perimeter stalwart like, say, OG Anunoby could be worth pursuing in theory, James’ no-trade clause in his expiring $52.6 million contract would prevent such a move.
So the Lakers may need to look elsewhere on their roster for a more marginal change to shore up their defense. Los Angeles has long been rumored to be interested in acquiring Miami Heat swingman Andrew Wiggins, who has the size and speed to effectively defending shooting guards through mobile power forwards.
The 30-year-old Kansas product is currently earning a relatively reasonable (albeit, slightly generous) $28.2 million deal this season, and has a $30.2 million player option for next year. The 6-foot-6 former Warriors All-Star and champ could draw significant interest on the trade market.
Wiggins’ Solid Season Start in South Beach
Through 16 games for the 13-6 Miami Heat, Wiggins has been averaging 16.4 points on .475/.350/.650 shooting splits, 4.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.0 blocks a night.
Per ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel, the Heat would want something a bit more appetizing than just more expiring money back in a deal for Wiggins.
“Miami has continued to signal that it won’t be dumping Wiggins for expiring contracts, as it would want real value in the form of a future first-round pick and a player or two who could immediately contribute to its playoff pursuit,” Siegel writes.
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Starting combo forward Rui Hachimura may boast the best present-day, on-court value among the Lakers’ movable assets. His $18.3 million deal would need to be combined with another contract, something like reserve point guard Gabe Vincent ‘s expiring $11.5 million salary or center/power forward Maxi Kleber’s expiring $11 million deal. Smart, who has lapped Vincent in head coach JJ Redick’s rotation, has a $5.4 million player option for 2026-27.
The Lakers have just one tradeable future first-round pick this season (in 2031 or ’32), but they’ll have three by the 2026 NBA Draft. Would ditching a protected first, Hachimura and either Vincent or Kleber be enough for Miami? That may hinge on how valuable Miami thinks the pick will become.
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