Lakers reportedly interested in Luka Doncic, like every other NBA team

The savvy Lakers reportedly see young up-and-comer Luka Doncic as the face of the franchise after LeBron James, surely a thought no other team has had.

A lot of the focus about LeBron James and the Lakers has been about maximizing his final seasons in purple and gold, which has led to the frustration from fans about the team’s inactivity this summer.

However, life after LeBron is a very real possibility the team has to consider. Who might be the star to pair with Anthony Davis in that time period? Donovan Mitchell and Trae Young have been mentioned as possibilities.

The Lakers, though, are dreaming big by looking at...Luka Doncic?

According to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer, the Lakers are eyeing as Luka Doncic as the succession plan for LeBron James.

“I’ve reported on this podcast and on The Ringer how they have their sights set for Luka in the future. We’ll see if that works out. Dallas just made a Finals. Dallas is looking better than ever with their supporting cast. That may not work out. But the Lakers, by not trading their future picks, clearly they’re still thinking long term at this point. They’re not going all in as you might expect many teams to do with LeBron James.”

Here’s the deal, I get aiming big, but aiming for Luka is silly. He just led Dallas to the Finals, can sign an absolutely enormous contract and the Mavericks are likely going to have minimal interest in trading him.

And that last point is pretty pertinent because signing him in free agency is highly unlikely. Our own Bryan Toporek recently dove into what life for the Lakers would look like after LeBron and specifically mentioned Luka.

However, after making an All-NBA team in each of the past two seasons, he’s now eligible to sign a five-year supermax deal worth a projected $345.3 million with the Dallas Mavericks next offseason.

The Lakers could offer him no more than a four-year, $219.4 million contract as a free agent in 2026. Fresh off a Finals run in Dallas, it’s hard to imagine him turning down an extra $126 million next summer for a chance to sign with the Lakers two years from now. The same goes for SGA in OKC.

The new CBA deals have encouraged players to sign with their teams and demand trades later. In that sense, the Lakers stocking up assets is logical. But good luck convincing Dallas to trade Luka unless he’s ready to go full Anthony Davis-in-New-Orleans to nuke his relationship with the franchise and city.

I respect the Lakers eyeing a post-LeBron plan, and they’re going to have to take that into consideration. But, hopefully, they’re not putting much into landing Luka Doncic, who isn’t going to be a realistic option.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.