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Lakers Predicted to 'Try' Trading for Luka Doncic's Former Teammate

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Ashish Mathur | Last updated May 29, 2025 7:37 PM ET

The Los Angeles Lakers made arguably one of the biggest trades in sports history when they acquired Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks in February.

The Lakers had to part ways with Anthony Davis to get Doncic, leaving the team with a major hole at center.

Los Angeles was the third seed in the Western Conference this year. The team was projected to compete for the championship with Doncic and LeBron James leading the way.

However, the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs in five games. Los Angeles head coach JJ Redick played without a center in the second half of Game 4 and all of Game 5.

With the Lakers in dire need of a center, Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report predicts the purple and gold to try trading for one of Doncic's former teammates this offseason.

In a column called "Every NBA Team's Toughest Upcoming Financial Decision," Pincus projected the Lakers to try to trade for Mavericks center Daniel Gafford, although the NBA analyst doesn't believe a deal will happen.

"Look for the Lakers to try to get someone like Daniel Gafford from the Dallas Mavericks, who may be unlikely to trade with L.A. in the near future given the fallout from the Doncic deal," Pincus wrote.

Doncic and Gafford appeared in 48 games together in Dallas. The two had incredible chemistry on the court, particularly on lob plays.

Doncic averaged 30.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 9.2 assists with Gafford, while Gafford averaged 11.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.6 blocks with Doncic.

The 26-year-old Gafford will make $14.4 million next season in the final year of his contract. He averaged 12.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks for the Mavericks this season while shooting 70.2% from the field.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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