Last season, the Suns knocked the Lakers out in the first round of the playoffs. This season, the Suns helped eliminate the Lakers from playoff contention by defeating them on Tuesday.
The Lakers entered the night trailing the Spurs for the final spot in the Play-In Tournament by two games. Since San Antonio won on Tuesday and owns the tiebreaker, Los Angeles can no longer finish higher than 11th in the Western Conference standings with only three games remaining in its season.
It brings an end to a disappointing season for the Lakers, who entered with the second-best odds to win the championship. The problem? They're going to have a hard time improving their roster in the coming months.
Here's a snapshot of where the Lakers stand heading into the offseason.
All salaries are from Spotrac.
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Lakers upcoming free agents
The Lakers handed out a number of one-year contracts last offseason, so they have several players hitting unrestricted free agency this offseason. The most notable: Malik Monk and Carmelo Anthony, who will finish the season ranked third and fourth, respectively, on the team in minutes played, and Avery Bradley, who started at shooting guard for over half of the season.
Additionally, Russell Westbrook and Kendrick Nunn have player options in their contracts for the 2022-23 season while both Austin Reaves and Stanley Johnson have team options.
| Unrestricted free agents | Restricted free agents | Player option | Team option |
| Malik Monk | None | Russell Westbrook | Austin Reaves |
| Carmelo Anthony | Kendrick Nunn | Stanley Johnson | |
| Avery Bradley | |||
| Trevor Ariza | |||
| Wayne Ellington | |||
| Dwight Howard | |||
| Kent Bazemore | |||
| D.J. Augustin |
Lakers future salaries, roster
Westbrook has a $47.1 million player option in his contract for the 2022-23 season. Having agreed to a two-year extension in 2020, LeBron James will be entering the final season of his current contract. Anthony Davis, meanwhile, has a $43.2 million player option for 2024-25.
| Players | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 |
| Russell Westbrook | $47.1 million (PO) | UFA | - |
| LeBron James | $44.5 million | UFA | - |
| Anthony Davis | $38.0 million | $40.6 million | $43.2 million (PO) |
| Talen Horton-Tucker | $10.3 million | $11.0 million (PO) | - |
| Kendrick Nunn | $5.3 million (PO) | - | - |
| Austin Reaves | $1.6 million (TO) | RFA | - |
| Stanley Johnson | $2.4 million (TO) | UFA | - |
| Wenyen Gabriel | $1.6 million (CH) | RFA | |
| Mason Jones | RFA |
PO = Player option
TO = Team Option
CH = Cap hold
RFA = Restricted free agency
UFA = Unrestricted free agency
Lakers 2022 NBA Draft picks
The Lakers do not have a pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
The Lakers gave up their 2022 first-round pick in the deal that brought Davis to Los Angeles. The Pelicans then included that pick in the Steven Adams-Jonas Valanciunas trade with a top-10 protection. That means if the Lakers' pick lands in the top-10, it'll go to the Pelicans. (The Grizzlies would instead get two second-round picks.) If it falls outside of the top-10, it'll go to the Grizzlies.
Heading into Tuesday's game against the Suns, the pick had a 99.6 percent chance of staying in the top-10.
The Spurs own the Lakers' second-round pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
One burning question
How different will the Lakers look next season?
It's going to be a struggle for the Lakers to make big changes in the offseason. With Westbrook, James and Davis earning as much as they are, they'll likely be in the same position they were last offseason, offering mostly minimum contracts in free agency. They don't currently have a pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and they lack the resources to make a transformative trade.
The most interesting player to watch is, of course, Westbrook. Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer reported on March 2 that there is "mutual interest" in finding Westbrook a new home in the offseason. While one team strategist told Fischer at the time that they would "require two first-round picks" to take on Westbrook's deal, other team personnel had optimism that he would become "more movable once his contract becomes an expiring contract."
Assuming Westbrook picks up his player option for 2022-23, he will be on the books for $47.1 million next season. He will then be an unrestricted free agent in the 2023 offseason.
One thing that seems for certain is that the Lakers will make a change on the sidelines. Fischer reported more recently that Los Angeles is "still expected to part ways" with head coach Frank Vogel. Quin Snyder and Doc Rivers were both mentioned as potential candidates.
