The Los Angeles Lakers are in desperate need of a backup center, and if the team decides to sign top available free agent Dwight Powell to fill the role, Bronny James could be the casualty of that decision.
Through four games, it’s clear Kevon Looney isn’t the answer for the minutes when Walker Kessler is off the court, and the Lakers are expected to start the search for someone else to play in the frontcourt.
With that, according to one top team insider, James could be on the chopping block, whether it’s waiving him to make room on the roster for someone like Powell, or using him as a trade asset for a center like Moussa Cisse or Jericho Sims.
Lakers Could Cut Ties With Bronny James For New Backup Center
Speaking on the most recent episode of his show, Buha’s Block, Lakers reporter Jovan Buha stated that regardless of whether the Lakers hunt in the trade or free agency market, James is the top candidate to be off the roster to make room for a new center.
“Whatever they decide, I think something has to happen soon because they can’t keep playing this current rotation,” Buha said, also mentioning Jaden Hardy as a potential player who could be moved. “Then it’s Hardy or Bronny. And then I think they’re gonna try to flip Hardy. So Bronny is the one who’s only making a couple million that they could potentially waive.”
Should the Lakers cut ties with James or Hardy, free agent big man Powell has been deemed the team’s top target to replace Looney as the backup big man behind Kessler if a trade doesn’t come through.
“I think they probably have to address it via trade ultimately,” Buha added. “But if they want to – like, yeah, I made the analogy with Dwight Powell being a Band-Aid, but you might need a Band-Aid until the trade deadline. So maybe you do go Dwight Powell.”
Powell is a tenured NBA veteran, so he couldn’t come in on a two-way deal. That means the Lakers would need to waive James or Hardy to make room for him on the roster. Perhaps two-way players AK Okereke and Arthur Kaluma could be on the chopping block as well, but there aren’t a ton of two-way-eligible players who are viable free agent additions right now.
“They’re in a situation where, at a minimum, I think you gotta change the two-way spots and bring in a big who can play, but potentially you do that with the back end of the roster,” Buha noted.
Los Angeles Could Trade Two Young Players For A Big Man
Along with mentioning James and Hardy as potential roster cut candidates, Buha has discussed the idea of the Lakers trading one or both of them. It’s clear the two are at the bottom of the rotation and depth chart, so if the front office can find a rival team interested in adding one of the two young guards, that could be another fix to the team’s backcourt dilemma.
“Jaden Hardy is not, I think, a serious rotation player,” Buha said. “I think they’re gonna try to flip Hardy.”
The insider had previously floated Hardy as a Lakers trade candidate during the preseason, as he was also one of a few players in the running to be the final roster cut, a nod that was ultimately given to Dalton Knecht.
His value around the league is uncertain, but perhaps James could garner a bigger package.
The Lakers failed to deal Knecht to the Milwaukee Bucks for Sims, but as CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn recently said, there’s a chance LeBron James‘ son carries higher trade value, which could mean he might move the needle enough for Los Angeles to either land Sims or Cisse of the Dallas Mavericks.
“If I were the Lakers, I’d be trying to trade Bronny right now to some owner who wants to sell some jerseys. I’d rather keep Knecht on the books as possible trade salary than cut him and deal with dead money. The Lakers don’t really need the James brand like other teams do,” he wrote in a post on X.
“Just hasn’t reached the point of offensive viability through two years, and the defensive threshold is just so freaking high at that size that if he’s never gonna make shots, he basically has to be a Jamal Shead-level pest to even justify a roster spot and he isn’t.”
Outside of making a Hardy or James trade, it would be more difficult for the Lakers to move someone like Jarred Vanderbilt at this point in the season.
As Buha mentioned, a move around the edges is more likely, whether it’s waiving or trading James or Hardy for someone at the level of Powell, Sims, or Cisse.
For now, the Lakers’ front office remains quiet, but as the days go on, there’s a good chance more rumors and buzz will emerge about a move coming soon. Until then, it’s fair to say James and Hardy are firmly sitting on the chopping block just four games into the 2026-27 NBA season.
Lakers Urged To Cut Ties With Bronny James For Free Agent Center Target