One of the Los Angeles Lakers‘ biggest moves of the offseason while building a new roster around franchise star Luka Doncic was signing free agent wing Quentin Grimes to a four-year, $60 million deal this summer.
Grimes is expected to be the starting small forward for the Lakers this upcoming season, which would likely be a smart move considering the 26-year-old is now the fourth-highest-paid player on the roster.
However, before Grimes has even played a minute for the Lakers, the franchise was recently warned about the free-agent addition of the forward and how quickly things could go bad for everyone involved and turn into a ‘hostage’ situation if the player doesn’t get off to a strong start on his new team.
Lakers Big Free Agent Addition Has Question Marks
Writing for LakeShowLife.com, Collin Keane warned the Lakers that, though Grimes was one of the biggest additions in free agency this offseason, there’s a real chance he doesn’t turn out to be the player the front office hopes next to Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and Walker Kessler.
“The Los Angeles Lakers gave Quentin Grimes a $60 million contract this summer to be the type of player he’s never been in his career; not consistently, anyway. It’s arguably the biggest risk that Lakers GM Rob Pelinka is sweating over entering 2026-27,” he wrote. “The Grimes signing makes you scratch your head far more vigorously. Why is this guy the fourth-highest-paid player on the Lakers at the moment?”
Grimes played the previous year and a half with the Philadelphia 76ers, where he put up 13.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 0.9 steals on 45/33.4/84 shooting splits, mostly coming off the bench last season.
But now, on a new contract and in a much bigger role, Grimes has higher expectations as he joins the Lakers. He needs to become a better shooter and defender, two things Los Angeles was hunting for in free agency this offseason. While they could have targeted a bigger name, they instead went after Grimes on a big deal, which, as Keane wrote, might have been a bet too big to cash in on.
“Will the Quentin Grimes signing make the Lakers look foolish?” he asked. “It won’t if Grimes becomes the best version of himself in a Lakers uniform. And what does that look like, exactly? A two-way wing who is good enough to start on almost any NBA team. An elite point-of-attack perimeter defender. A reliable open jump shooter off the catch.”
Grimes has shown potential, but perhaps not at the level of the contract he signed with the Lakers this offseason.
LA Make Their Bed By Signing Quentin Grimes
Grimes has a big responsibility on the Lakers this season, but even if he isn’t the player the front office and coaching staff hoped he’d be.
As Keane also discussed, Los Angeles can’t just get rid of the forward in the middle of the season if he isn’t working out in the Purple and Gold playing alongside the team’s other stars.
“Even so, no matter how bad Grimes plays between Opening Night and February, the Lakers absolutely won’t trade him. That’s because doing so would make the front office look inadequate for having signed Grimes to an overpay, in the first place.”
Though on paper Grimes is a 3-and-D wing, his stats don’t necessarily reflect that he is great at either. He does fill the open small forward position, but when it comes to fit next to Doncic and Reaves, he hasn’t shown the skill set that the Lakers were previously thought to go after this offseason.
Regardless, until the Lakers see what they have with Grimes on the court, they are expected to give him the biggest role of his career so far, and need him to perform for this group to reach their peak.
“In this sense, Grimes is holding the reins of the Lakers’ wing play in 2026-27. If he isn’t who the Lakers are paying him to become, LA won’t accomplish big things next season, and that’s that,” Keane added. “So much rests on Grimes’ shoulders this season, and he’s never carried this sort of responsibility. Had the Lakers gone out and acquired another starter-level wing like Jonathan Kuminga, Grimes wouldn’t be as consequential. But here we are. It’s tough to feel overly optimistic about the situation, but maybe this is when Grimes will put it all together.”
The Lakers took some huge risks this offseason amid all the roster changes, and the Grimes signing was just one of them.
He’ll now have a brighter spotlight on himself than ever before, and as seen in the past in Los Angeles, if he isn’t living up to his contract and expectations, that could have a serious impact on the ceiling of this team, which needs all the defensive and shooting help possible to even have a chance to compete for a title in the West in 2026-27.
Lakers Get Bad News As Quentin Grimes ‘Hostage’ Situation Could Become Reality