One NBA insider revealed how negotiations went between the LA Lakers and Dorian Finney-Smith.
The Los Angeles Lakers have been quite inactive during this free agency period. Despite their roster needing a lot of work, Rob Pelinka hasn’t done much yet.
In fact, the Lakers are one of the biggest losers of free agency, having only made one signing during the period so far.
The Lakers lost three of their free agent targets to other teams on Day 1 of free agency. To make matters worse, the Lakers then lost Dorian Finney-Smith in free agency as well.
It’s hard to understand why the Lakers aren’t being more aggressive. Rob Pelinka wants to prioritize the 2027 free agency window, something many fans cannot understand, given he has LeBron James and Luka Doncic on his roster.
But things are only going from bad to worse for the Lakers’ president, as it appears his handling of the negotiations with Dorian Finney-Smith cost him a valuable two-way wing player.
Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty ImagesLA Lakers and Dorian Finney-Smith negotiations didn’t end well
Zach Lowe spoke on his podcast about what he heard about the Los Angeles Lakers’ approach to free agency so far.
Specifically, when it came to the Dorian Finney-Smith negotiations, Lowe admitted that he heard things were not going well between the two sides.
This is because the Lakers were prioritizing their long-term money, and the talks between the two sides soured quite a bit.
“On Saturday, I said, ‘Keep an eye on the Finney-Smith situation. That’s going to be the tell for me for how the Lakers are going to be thinking about things. I heard negotiations were going badly.
“He even opted out. Do the Lakers even want to pay him? The answer to that turned out to be no.
“The Lakers didn’t want to pay him, and he opted out. And I don’t think they ended on very good terms either.”
Rob Pelinka making big mistake being so cautious
If the nature of these negotiations is true, then Rob Pelinka is making a big mistake with the way he is approaching free agency.
Right now, Pelinka has two of the best players in the NBA in LeBron James and Luka Doncic. Rather than going all out and assembling a championship roster, he is trying to maintain flexibility for the future.
Outside of the Lakers signing Jake LaRavia, they haven’t made any big waves this offseason. But they are expected to sign Deandre Ayton today.
Breaking: Deandre Ayton is finalizing a contract buyout with the Portland Trail Blazers to become a free agent, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/DNYcNqRvkW
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Deandre Ayton has a lot of the same discipline issues as Luka Doncic, which isn’t a good look for them as a team at all.
We will have to wait and see whether Pelinka changes his approach or tries to bring in some players to compete. But his negotiations with Finney-Smith show that he is trying to play the long game, for better or for worse.