When thinking of potential trades for the Los Angeles Lakers, and any other team for that matter, the majority of focus goes toward the on-court product and how deals affect the roster. But money is always a factor in everything as well and that is certainly the case for the Lakers, especially with a looming luxury tax bill.
The Lakers are on pace to be a luxury tax team for the third consecutive season, which would qualify them for the repeater tax. This would add one dollar for every dollar spent over the luxury tax line, basically doubling the worth of certain contracts and it leads to some absolutely massive luxury tax bills for certain teams.
Apparently, this is something the Lakers are very much aware of as, according to Kyle Goon of the Southern California News Group, one of the themes within the front office as they are exploring potential deals is to limit their repeater tax hit next season:
The rival executive also told SCNG that one of the franchise’s recurring themes in discussions of multiple possible deals is a desire to limit the hit on their repeater tax, which increases exponentially next year as they fill out a cast around James and Anthony Davis.
While this is never something the fans want to hear about, that level of money will always be on the minds of owners and the front office. For instance, the Golden State Warriors are also set to hit the repeater tax next year and already have the NBA’s highest luxury tax bill this season at just over $170 million.
But next season with that tax and other extensions kicking in, they are estimated to pay upwards of $265 million just in luxury taxes, meaning they would likely spend more than $500 million on their roster. To be clear, the Lakers are unlikely to meet that level of a tax bill with their current season luxury tax at around $44 million, but things can add up quickly.
The Lakers have always been about winning championships and have proven throughout their existence that they will do whatever is necessary to accomplish those goals. But just like any other business, they are going to keep an eye on their bottom line as well.
Jazz, Raptors, Hornets, Bulls, Spurs viewed as potential Lakers trade partners
The potential Kyrie Irving trade is no longer a possibility, but the Lakers are still exploring many other trades around the league with many teams popping up as potential trade partners.
The Utah Jazz, Toronto Raptors, Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs are all looked at as possible trade partners with each team having intriguing options who could help the Lakers.
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