Are the Lakers willing to waste two years of Dončić’s career, including one with James, to wait for Jokić to become a free agent in 2027? What of the “2027 plan” that seems to be buzzing around the Lakers faniverse?
The goal would be to leverage cap room available in 2027. Should Denver falter this season and Jokić find himself disillusioned with the Nuggets’ direction, he could do what most NBA stars do when they’re unhappy—force a trade.
Given that he can opt out of his contract after 2026-27, the threat of finishing out his deal and leaving for the Lakers—who could have the spending power in 2027 to sign him outright as a free agent, leaving Denver with nothing—is why there’s a 2027 plan at all.
The hope is that Jokić’s bond with Dončić is why he picks the Lakers. Denver would get most of what the Lakers have in terms of young players and draft compensation.
Austin Reaves has a low enough cap hold as a free agent that L.A. could absorb Jokić into cap room, then pay Reaves over $30 million per season while retaining Dončić. Then Dončić would theoretically sign an extension with the Lakers when he becomes eligible in August.
Is this a viable plan? The obvious answer is “not at all.” Then again, the Lakers did land Dončić, just as they landed Anthony Davis, LeBron James, Pau Gasol, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain in different but similar ways.
From the Lakers’ point of view, if trading for Jokić doesn’t work out, they’ll just shift to Giannis Antetokounmpo instead.
