Locked On Lakers - Daily Podcast On The Los Angeles Lakers - Luka Dončić Out Monday... and How Much Longer? Plus, the Lakers Fill Their Last Roster Spot With Kobe Bufkin

Episode Date: February 9, 2026

The Lakers will be without Luka Dončić on Monday against the Thunder. But the good news is, at least according ot JJ Redick, the Lakers may not be without him for that long. Luka appears to have dodged the worst outcomes, and is considered day-to-day. No question, the Lakers are going to be cautious with him, so it's certainly possible he'll sit out the final three games before the All-Star break. But between the week-plus from the injury to the break, then another week-plus during the break, there's currently no reason to believe Luka won't be available once games start up again. That, it goes without saying, is huge. Moreover, the Lakers will have Deandre Ayton in the lineup, after he missed Saturday's game against the Warriors. And the Lakers have Luke Kennard in the fold, who was excellent Saturday in his debut, and gives the Lakers a badly needed dimension of excellent shooting and secondary playmaking, which becomes even more valuable as the Lakers hunt for buckets without Luka. Maxi Kleber, who has been in and out of the lineup all year, is coming off of his two best games of the season, doing all sorts of little things that help teams win (and make coaches happy). Add to that the Lakers having a full roster, having signed Kobe Bufkin to that 15th and final roster spot. That last part- the Bufkin signing - was a little controversial among Lakers fans, many of whom hoped the Lakers would find more help in the buyout market, and bring in a more established name. That's not totally off the board, but it's off the board for a while at least. So all in all, are the Lakers better set to get by without Dončić for (potentially) three more games?  HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky  SEGMENT 1: No Luka -- how long will he be out?  SEGMENT 2: Kennard's debut and what he brings.  SEGMENT 3: Kobe Bufkin?  Everydayer Club  If you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get ad-free audio, access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans. Click here to learn more and join your team’s community: https://lockedonpodcasts.com/everydayerclub Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Turbo TaxFor a limited time, you can have your taxes done by a local TurboTax expert for just $150 — all in, if a TurboTax expert didn’t file for you last year. Just file by February 28. Take taxes off your plate and get back to your life. Visit https://TurboTax.com/local to book your appointment today.  ZocDocStop putting off those doctor appointments and go to https://Zocdoc.com/LOCKEDONNBA to find and instantly book a doctor you love today.WayfairGet last-minute hosting essentials, gifts for all your loved ones, and decor to celebrate the holidays for WAY less.Head to https://Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home. Wayfair. Every style. Every home.  5-Hour ENERGYHave your cake & drink it too. Birthday cake-flavor is back, no fork needed. Vanilla-y cakey flavor, caffeinated kick, and no sugar. It's party time. Order Now at 5-hourENERGY.com or Amazon. PrizePicksDownload the PrizePicks app today and use codeLOCKEDONNFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup.Click Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNBAIndeedListeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/podcastGametimeToday's episode is brought to you by Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONfor $20 off your first purchase. Terms and conditions apply.FanDuelToday’s episode is sponsored by FanDuel. The Winter Games are on. And there’s no better way to follow them than with a bet on FanDuel. FanDuel - Play your game. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

No Luca Donchich on Monday. We're not sure when he's going to play again, but we'll tell you why the Lakers might be as well equipped as they've ever been to get by without him. That's next. You are Locked on Lakers. Your daily Los Angeles Lakers podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day.

Thanks to everybody for making Locked on Lakers, your first listen to every day, whether you're a Spotify guy. Maybe you get the podcast through Apple, iTunes. maybe you're one of the 37,000 plus subscribers who tune in on YouTube, the Lockdown Lakers YouTube channel. No matter how you do it,

you are part of making the Lockdown Podcast Network, the number one sports podcast network in this or any other known universe. I'm Brian Komenetsky. With Andy Kemenetsky, we have spent nearly the last two decades covering the Lakers for ESPN, for the Athletic, for the LA Times,

and this is always a tricky time of year, Andy, as you get towards, the All-Star break. It is the games. People can see a bit of a break coming, no, no, you know, literally and figuratively. And sometimes these games can get a little bit wonky. The Lakers will be short-handed in Monday's game against Oklahoma City.

No Luca Donchich for sure. We'll tell you who else will and won't be playing in that game. I do need to tell you first though today's episode is brought to you by Fanduel. The winter games are on. There's no better way to follow them than with a bet on Fandul. Fan duel, play your game. So, Luca, on the one hand,

he's not going to play. A Monday night against the Thunder. We're not exactly sure when he's going to be back. But the Lakers seem to indicate, Andy, that the worst potential options were

not something they were worried about. There's no four to six week announcement like the nuggets had to do with Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson, the Lakers seem to have dodged the biggest bullets here. They are optimistic that this is not going to be anything particularly serious, like you said. Now, that does not mean necessarily that he's going to return before the All-Star break. You know, there's going to be he's out Monday.

He's already been officially ruled out against OKC, but that is the front end of a back-to-back. So there is always the chance that maybe they were giving him one extra day and then he would play on Tuesday knowing that a back-to-back was out of the question to begin with. They may be saving him from these first two games, but then they would play him on Thursday, I believe, against Dallas. Correct. Or they might want to give Luca the most time off possible, which means not just holding him out of these three games for maintenance purposes. it also means creating the plausible deniability to keep them out of the All-Star game. So if you want to give Luca that maximum break that includes any league pressure towards suiting up for the All-Star game, you sometimes have to bite the bullet with actual games.

Thankfully for the Lakers, the Thunder are going to be without SGA and without A.J. Mitchell. Williams is actually off the injury report for the thunder. Like he, they haven't even like even dropping any hints about his health. He's just out with it with a, I believe it was a hamstring or a groin or something. And all of a sudden, well,

as JJ said, the data supports when there's an opportunity to return against the Lakers. Yes. Most players take that opportunity, but you know, Dallas waters of Lake Minnetonka. Exactly.

but more family friendly. It's a safe for work version of cleansing yourself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka. The Purple Rain fans out there will know what we're talking about. Shout out to Apollonia. But yeah, I mentioned, we'll get to this in a second, but like, you know, to your point, like why the Lakers, let me just say this off the time. It's not good that Luca Dantz, which is out. They are not better with Luca Dantra Chow.

They are not going to find a better way of playing or do all these things like, you know, it's best, you know, the ball. Stop. The question is whether or not you can get through in a very competitive Western conference. What might be a week without it where you're going to play three games and all these other things? And we'll get to why the Lakers may be, maybe best set to do that. But to your point, I think because the All-Star break is coming, which is a natural, and let's just assume even if Luca plays, you know, he goes out, he starts, he plays for four minutes and sits down. It is a natural spot where you just get a week off, basically.

And so it could not come at a better time for the Lakers, given what's going on here. But they are not, I mean, look around the league. Look what happened to Austin Reeves when it was perceived that he came back, perhaps a little too quickly from that calf injury, and then it was gone for 19 games. They are going to be, or should be, especially with the All-Star game coming up, incredibly conservative with Luca, in my opinion. Yeah, I think they will be. And if you're going to do this beyond just the long-term implications for Luca or long-term for this season, and trying to have the best version of him in, you know, available for the playoffs, as healthy as he can be, this three stretch of game, you know, the stretch of three games

before the All-Star break is about as realistically good as you could be in the West insofar as having to play shorthanded. As we mentioned, the Thunder are going to be missing both SGA and A.J. Mitchell, which doesn't make them a pushover, but it makes them more beatable if you are short-handed. Well, yeah, but you take the MVP away. Right. You take the MVP away and you take a key score and rotation player, maybe one of the leading six-man-of-the-year candidates, that's going to affect the Thunder.

Thursday, they play the Mavericks. The Mavericks are a, they're like a skeleton version of a skeleton version of a skeleton team. Not sure what the Mavericks are. Right, exactly. Like the Mavericks are. are in full-on tank mode. They might start taking lessons from a team like Utah

that on Saturday played a bunch of their good players, started to control the game. They just pulled them. Yeah, they just pulled them out. That way, Ace Bailey could get more reps. Very important for the future that Ace Bailey gets. Look, I mean, it's Utah. Well, not to get two sidetracked here,

but Utah, these things are actually important for competitive balance down the stretch. you start counting how many games you're playing. Because about two-thirds of the league is still playing basketball, and about a third of the league is tanking honestly as aggressively as I think I've seen this happen in February. Like, we're not even at the All-Star break yet. And Utah, you know, they started Yusuf Nurkich and then didn't play him in the second half,

I believe. And what you're referring to, Andy, is the new Jaron Jackson Jr., Larry Markan and front court, which was up in this game, they had to put a stop to that real quick and sat them down. Washington is doing all kinds of strange things. Like, it's crazy out there. And so, you know, we'll see. The good news for the Lakers is DeAndre Aitin, who did not play over the weekend,

is off the injury report. So he's going to play. So that was a late scratch that was unexpected. He should be back in the lineup. Obviously, having size, more size, a variety of center play available to you against a team like the Thunder is a really handy thing to have around. So the Lakers will have all three of their centers available, presumably. And now that Maxie Claibah is playing well, something I think we'll touch on during this episode, the Lakers really do have a lot of choices and a lot of different ways they can match up.

A Duthyro is been assigned to play and practice. with South Bay, which is good news because it means he is starting to get to a place where he can do five-on-five in contact and all these other things. And at some point, either we'll be back with the big club or just as good getting a lot of run in with South Bay. So the Lakers slowly, slowly, Andy, starting to get a little healthier. And that gets to why I think the Lakers might be reasonably well-suited to kind of get through. these games because not only they're getting guys back, Austin Reeves has looked pretty good and should be seeing that minutes restrictions start to creep up in terms of the amount of time.

He can play the addition of Luke Canard. And the Lakers filled out that 15th roster spot by signing Kobe Buffkin, who had been destroying the G League to a contract that essentially is a one-on-one finishes this year, an option for the team for next year. So that's the 15th spot for the Lakers, and presumably their roster is relatively set. You are not Andy available for the show on Saturday to talk about the debut of Luke Kinnard, but it is potentially a big reason the Lakers might be in better shape going forward. So I want to get your thoughts on his debut next.

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It had a nice game. One of six Lakers who reached double figures. hit a couple big threes including his first shot as a Laker and you know out of an ATO in the second half you know Lakers drew up a play for him

and LeBron was very complimentary not just of his shooting but his overall basketball acumen which is something that we actually talked about in the reaction video when they acquired him was that he does do a few more things than just stand there and hit three

pointers got you know he's a guy who has had decent numbers. He's not a terrible rebounder for his position on a per minute basis,

particularly given some of his other athletic limitations, just a good basketball player. Lakers close the game with him on the floor. Clearly,

J.J. Reddick recognizes both what he sees as his qualities as a player, but also the impact that he can have

on how the floor is arranged. Your thoughts, Andy, on the debut of J.J. Reddick, I'm sorry, of a JJ Redick clone, Luke Kinnard. You were in the building, so you got to be alive.

Yeah, he, Conard put the K in closer that night. It was really exciting to see him close in his first game as a Laker. And his first four baskets, I thought were really exciting, not just because they were four baskets leading to the 10 points that he had that night, but there was variety in that basket, the baskets. Like you said, the first one was a catch-and-shoot three. It came basically off of Vanderbilt steel of a Vanderbilt turnover. Then he got the ball to Austin and Austin fed Luke Knard as he got to the arc.

The second basket he had, he was at the three-point arc with the ball. Defender closes in. He racks the close, gets to the rim. Third, overplaying defender. He ends up getting fed on a back cut. gets to the rim. And then the fourth basket, he used a really good Maxi Claibah screen on DeAnthony Melton to relocate to the corner, really nice cross-court feed from Boston. That was the ATO. Yeah, it was a really, really nice, nicely drawn up play, nicely executed play.

And indicative of how we talked about before, Rui is a laser on this team. Like, he is one of the best three-point shooters in the league on a percentage basis, and he is a proven, consistent outside score. But he's much more of a stationary score, much more of a pure catching shoot threat. Like if- A stationary three-point shooter. He'll put the ball on the floor.

That's what I was going to say. To mid-range and stuff, but as a three-point shooter, yeah. Yeah, I was going to say, it's not that Rui can't move as a score, but he generally moves more towards the basket, whether to the rim or typically around the three point line elbows, something like that. He doesn't move off screens. He doesn't necessarily move a lot to get his three point shot.

Luke Kinnard is somebody you really, A, automatically have to mark. Like we saw in this game, defenders are really, really ingrained and afraid you do not leave. Yeah, there were a couple. There were a couple, Austin got to the rim a couple times when it was just clear that help. was either slow or not coming because, again, like you say, whereas Jared Vanderbilt's in the corner, Jake LaRaevae is in the corner, basically anybody else is in the corner,

even decent shooters, that help will come because, you know, we saw Quentin Post get chewed out by Steve Kerr for biting on a Jared Vanderbilt pump fake in the corner. Like, not only you know, that does deserve a lecture.

It really, it really does. It does. You earned a talking to, Quentin Post. Two things about that play. We're wrong. First of all, closing hard on Vanderbilt in the corner to begin with is not something you want to do. Second of all, don't get in the way of the shot, man.

Like, this is what we want. And so Vando puts the ball on the floor and gets an easy bucket. Like, teams are trained to run away from Marcus Smart in the corner. That messes with your spacing. And sometimes it means open. threes, but most of the time it means the, the opponent is getting the kind of shot from you, the Lakers, that they want. Kinnard changes that spacing significantly.

Yeah, and just his ability to run off screens, to play as that type of player, it adds a dimension beyond just his pure gravity. And that pure gravity by itself is really valuable. I mean, he, Luke Kinnard is an elite. shooter, but his ability to be used as a movement three-point shooter combined with the fact that, you know, while he's not a break you off the dribble type of player, he is, but he is confident putting the ball on the floor and doing something with it. Like it adds just another dimension to this team offensively that they can use. It is a team that in a lot of ways, both sides of the

ball, the best version of them is dictated by their offense. So they need the most offensive weapons possible. And Luke Kinnard is going to help with that. It was interesting too. Like the good play of Kinnard was also a really good prism for seeing how much more effective Maxi Klaeba has been over the last couple games because two of Kinnard's buckets were created. I'm sorry, one for Karnard, one for Rui in the corner,

both created for by really effective screens from Kleba. You know, screening away from the ball so the help defender that was supposed to close couldn't get there.

And, you know, I realize he's not much of, you know, he's not shooting the three at all anymore. Anyway, he's taking them. He's generally not making them. He is not scoring a ton. But when Maxi Claver's, take him enthusiastically. Those three.

Those three, no. You can feel Maxi Klebba as unenthusiastic about taking it as generally you are watching him take that. Like, nobody is pleased with the end result. We all know this is something that needs to happen. Right. None of us, let's just do this and move on and let us not speak of it again. You know, but like when you get screened by Maxi, you are screened. Like you know, like he is a very effective screen setter. He had a couple really nice defensive plays. He moves the ball where he's like,

Claibah being, you know, not quite what he was in his best moments in Dallas, but certainly better than he has been in a lot of his moments with the Lakers. Really does change the dynamic of what JJ Redick has available to it, because we've seen and you see why in those moments, it sounds cliche, but like the guy is both a very predictable, it doesn't make a lot of mistakes, which coaches love.

But also too, like he does make like legit winning basketball plays. Those screens to seal off help to make an open three, that is a winning basketball play. Like that kind of stuff, has to happen around the floor. And so you can see why whenever he's even seeming like he's healthy,

JJ rushes to put him on the floor because the results are going to. The highest plus minus on the team in the last two games. Yeah, we'll see what happens when D'Andre is back with Jackson Hayes. You know, the last couple of games where Maxis played well has also coincided with either D'Andre being out with a sore knee or Jackson Hayes being suspicious. suspended for shoving a mascot, which Jackson, by the way.

Rang, rapidity? Well, he addressed after the Golden State game. And the explanation was basically as he was stretching out and getting ready, G. Whiz, the mascot for the Washington Wizards, accidentally while he was running past the Lakers bench with an oversized banner flag, part of the pregame celebration. He stepped on Jackson's foot. As Jackson said, he might have lost his head there, probably a better way to handle. I love the idea of might have as if it's in question.

The jury's still out. The jury's still out as to whether or not Jackson overreacted. Yeah. Only time and distance and introspection is really going to lead us to know whether or not there was a better way to handle it for sure. We'll check back in six months. I like the idea, though, that Jackson did allow for the idea that there was probably a better way to handle it. By probably a better way, I mean, anyway. I guess we could have hit him with a chair.

Yeah, I mean, any way that was not more violent towards G-Wiz would have been a better way of handling it. Good suggestion from Kwabin said, I'm just going to try, 6-61 on the chat. Jackson Hay should bring G-Wiz to his dunk contest to show it was all in good fun. That's not a good, I made that suggestion. I made that suggestion on like the last couple shows. This is my suggestion. You should join the chat. You should join the chat.

We will put your comment in the show too, Andy. Lakers have rounded out their roster in somewhat controversial fashion, at least judging by the reaction from Lakers fans. It is an interesting debate and kind of a reference. random on how you feel Lakers management is handling things, which we will get into next. Locked on Lakers is brought to you by Fandul. The winter games are officially here. There was some going on after the big game.

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Okay. Rob Polinka was in fairly full bloom, I would say, over the weekend, speaking to the media about the acquisition of Luke Conard, redefining the word aggressive. He had his jacket, I think, almost styled out to where it was not just perfectly zipped down the front at an ideal length for his shirt underneath. It was also zipped up from the bottom. You know, you do that sort of split zipper thing.

So Rob was ready to go. And one of the things that he talked about was how they would be filling out that 15th roster spot. Very, they believed in due time. Well, little did we know. That time would come the same day with the Lakers reportedly agreeing to and then officially agreeing to on Sunday. Contract with Kobe Buffkin, who was briefly with the team on a 10-day, was fine, I guess, in limited time, but was destroying it in the G League and very likely would have been poached from the Lakers

by another team. The Lakers electing to Andy signed Buffkin as opposed to trying to get somebody else on the buyout market. It's an interesting decision to have to make between a guy you clearly like, potentially coming up through your G-League team, versus the potential maybe for a player who could help it a position that they need more.

Yeah, it's interesting. First of all, for those unaware of Kobe Buffkin's G-League stats to Brian's point, he really is crushing it. Almost 28 points a game on 5243-88 splits, roughly. So very, very good inside, outside free throw line scoring, averaging around four rebounds, a little under five assists, about one and a half steals, and a block per game, which is impressive for a six-four guard. Particularly defensively, there were some things that I like that he did during his brief stay

with the Lakers just in terms of activity and disruption. I actually thought he was more impressive there and as a rebounder than he was as a scorer. I would like to think that when they signed Buffkin this quickly, it wasn't just concerns that he would get scooped up. It was, it is imminent. He is about to get scooped up. If you do not do this now, as opposed to in a week, he ain't going to be there. Like this was by, say, Sunday when the official notice came out,

he was going to be somewhere else. because otherwise, regardless of what you think about Buffkin as the 15th man on this roster, it would seem like it was faster than necessary. Like, you know, what's the hurry in terms of signing Buffkin? So I have to assume that their intel was do this now or you're going to lose him. Right. I mean, the guys are hanging out in the G League. Don't wait around.

Like, if you have an offer from a team, you go. That's what I mean. Like there was a standing offer to do this now. In theory, the Lakers could wave Maxi Clava if they want to pick up someone else down the road as far as guys with no guarantees beyond the season. I mean, I actually think because Buffkin's deal is reportedly a team option for 26, 27, they could actually waive Buffkin if worst came to worst. And I'm not 100% sure on this, but I think they actually could wave him if they really wanted to pick him. They could. I mean, regardless of how they do it, I think there are some, you know,

pro rating and things. They're going to have to wait. There's, you know, the, you don't erase the numbers from your books. So they, you know, they put themselves further away. Sure. From being able to pick somebody up if they needed to. But like the other thing is just is, I will say, I am not a big buyout market guy.

I do not think those players historically, never, but they tend not to have that large of an impact. The buyout market, no doubt, is changing. There are better players who pop up on it now as teams try to avoid the tax, as players like a Chris Middleton and stuff like that, just are kind of remnants of the older contract structures, older CBA. You see more of those guys pop up.

that said, like, do I think there's a good chance that Kobe Buffkin will be just as impactful as anybody else they could sign, which is probably not that impactful. But there are chances that I think what the Lakers are really doing here is they're looking at Buffkin as a better version of Nick Smith. And they've had to pull the rip court on that a couple times this year. And Smith, who has had some good games, has done. definitely faded a little bit and is such a liability at his size that I think they think Buffkin can sort of do the same stuff, but just be a little bit sturdier there. And, you know, pick a name. Haywood Highsmith. And I know a lot of Lakers fans have been kind of kicking around.

You know, he's a wing player. He can shoot a little bit, a defensive profile. He's also been injured all year. So like- He has literally not played in the season at all. Right. So like guys like that, do you want to take a guy who's not played at all this season and make that your 15th? So like it's an imperfect thing. I don't hate the buffkin signing by any stretch. I don't know what the opportunity costs were. Like who else they thought they might be able to get that would help them more. But I'm not convinced there's a ton of help out there. Well, I think there are a few separate issues that can be sort of either examined through the prison. of Kobe Buffkin or will exasperate fans through the prism of Kobe Buffkin. It sounds like a like a 200 level literature class in high school.

We're going to examine things through the lens of Kobe Buffett. Well, there is, for example, Rob Polinkas very well-established fetish for combo guards. Like that is basically his favorite only fans tab. There's a lid for every pot. Yeah, his only fans tab is combo guards. That's the one that he visits the most. That is his internet history. It is combo guards.

And the Lakers track record, frankly, with developing or choosing a lot of combo guards, despite that being seemingly Rob's biggest wheelhouse as far as non-star players, it's spotty. You know, it can contain everything from Kendrick Nunn to, you know, which was one of the ultimate, terrible signings of recent Laker history, to the Russell Westbrook experience, to a massive success story like Austin Reeves, who is essentially a combo guard. So there, the, I guess, the span of success and failure can run wide. I think it's gone more towards failure. And then there's also just the idea that Rob doesn't seem to value other positions enough. something you and I have said before,

that doesn't necessarily mean Kobe Buffkin is a bad choice. It means I understand why the choice would frustrate a lot of Laker fans. Especially the timing. Are you going to lose that on Kobe Buffkin? Okay. Yeah. Mr. TD 331 pointing out that both Malik Monk and Jordan Goodwin were successful combo-ish type guards, maybe a little bit less with Goodwin.

he's more the defensive guy than an offensive, but regardless, like, those are some success stories as well. So again, the success versus failure can be all over the master. Not by out guys. It's worth. Right. Sure. But just in terms of identification, in terms of identifying that sort of player, because again, it's one that Rob Belinka focuses on a lot. And so, again, I understand why it can frustrate Laker fans, even if in some respects, it may not be specific to Kobe Buffkin. I do think, though, as far as the Lakers and the buyout market in general, you know, the actual wings that are going to be available or seen as potentially available, you know, High Smith, maybe Matisse Thibble, like there are a lot of injury concerns

with those guys. I also wonder how much of how attractive the Lakers are actually going to be as a buyout destination in the first place, because those guys need minutes. Like they want an opportunity to play because they're playing for the next contract. Like I know a lot of Laker fans have been interested in, ironically enough, combo guard Cam Thomas. And I had an exchange online with a Lakers Lounge host, former Locked on Lakers host Anthony Irwin, about Cam Thomas. And this was before it was reported that he was going to sign with the bucks.

But we knew that the Lakers were taking Buffkin. I'm like, if I'm Cam Thomas, the Lakers aren't even on my list. because he made a bet on himself with the net signing the qualifying offer, that bet has thus far gone sideways. He needs an opportunity to produce. He is not guaranteed to get that with the Lakers. Like the Lakers, roughly one through eight or so in the rotation, is fairly well established.

And I don't know if there's anybody on the buyout market that would necessarily eat a ton into any of those minutes. Right. Not without any of the- that doesn't make the Lakers attractive to a lot of these guys. And specifically, like, I didn't think there was a chance in hell, Cam Thomas, would even put the Lakers on his list.

It's not a good fit. It's not that Lakers couldn't use the scoring or the bencher. Like, the skill set, like, there is a reasonable fit there, but it's just not something if you're him, you want to take that chance on. They also could use them. They could really quick, they could use a young,

guy like Bufkin too. Like I will say Cam Thomas is 24. He's plenty of No, but I mean just in terms of

Buffkin in general. Right. He's very young. The Lakers need some access to young players they can hold to play. And it's also worth

note in Cam Thomas a terrible defender. So we'll, they play back to back Lakers, but as the week goes on, we'll have a lot of time

to sort of unpack some other interesting things that Rob Polinger talked about, including how the front office might start to evolve. in the Mark Walter era. So lots of that to look at.

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