After landing Marcus Smart, the Los Angeles Lakers are tied with the second-best odds to acquire another buyout candidate from the rebuilding Washington Wizards.
The Lakers and the Detroit Pistons are +600, trailing only the Phoenix Suns (+300) as the favorite bets at offshore sportsbook Bovada if Khris Middleton is bought out. The Miami Heat (+800) and Denver Nuggets (+900) are distant third and fourth in the betting list.
Considered long shots are Middleton’s former team, the Milwaukee Bucks and New York Knicks, tied at +1400 and the San Antonio Spurs (+1600).
Middleton has a $33.3 million expiring salary entering next season. After Smart reached a buyout with the Washington Wizards to join the Lakers, Middleton is a candidate to follow the same path to join a contender.
Khris Middleton Eyes Redemption
Getty Khris Middleton of the Washington Wizards eyes redemption in a contract season.
Ankle injuries have slowed Middleton down. The three-time All-Star managed to play only a combined 37 games last season while averaging just 11.9 points, his lowest scoring average since his rookie year.
Middleton landed in the nation’s capital in a four-team trade that brought Kyle Kuzma to Milwaukee.
It has been four years since Middleton was the second option next to Giannis Antetokounmpo during the Bucks’ title run, interestingly, at the expense of the Suns.
Now, 33, Middleton is looking for redemption on a contract year. To do that with the Lakers will be a dream Hollywood story.
But to be able to sign Middleton after a buyout, the Lakers will need to shed more salaries. Currently, they are hard-capped at first apron following Smart’s signing.
They’re just $1.1 million below the second apron, so they can’t even sign Middleton to a veteran minimum without first making a salary dump move.
Why Luka Signed Shorter Extension
Luka Doncic announced on Aug. 2 that he signed an extension with the Lakers.
“I just signed my extension with the Lakers. Excited to keep working to bring championships to LA and make Laker Nation proud. Grateful to the Lakers, my teammates and all the fans who’ve shown so much love since day one. This is just the beginning. 💜💛,” Doncic wrote on X.
Doncic opted to sign a shorter deal, setting him up for a mega-contract extension in 2028.
The deal is a three-year, $165 million maximum extension, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. Doncic could have signed for a four-year, $229 million deal, but opted for the shorter contract with a player option in 2028.
ESPN’s front office insider Bobby Marks previously reported that a shorter extension will make Doncic eligible to sign a monster contract in the immediate future.
“And that third year, and why the short-term option is because that third year, that player option year would have him with 10 years of service in the summer of 2028,” Marks said on “NBA Today” on Aug. 1. “And get ready for this number. He would now be eligible for five years, potentially $417 million that summer. So all that money he lost in the supermax from Dallas, he could definitely recoup that and then some three years from now.
Had the Dallas Mavericks not traded him, he would have been eligible to sign a five-year, $345 million max extension deal this summer.
Lakers Favorites to Land 3-Time All-Star After Marcus Smart Buyout