The offseason hasn’t gone to plans for the Los Angeles Lakers. The fans had sensed a dire need for a third star. The free agency market was cramming with vital players who could have transformed the Purple and Gold. LeBron James was even willing to take a pay cut. But their inability to sign these players has now landed Rob Pelinka in a rut alluding to the Akron Hammer signing an extension that limits the Lakers’ subsequent offseason activity.

James just signed a two-year $104 million extension with the Lakers. It includes a player option for next season, but it has had some severe implications on their roster improvement potential. With the new contract in place. the Lakers see themselves $12 million over the first apron and $1 million over the second apron. This also includes Bronny James‘ guaranteed contract which he is heavily favored to sign with the Lakers.

Currently, they don’t have access to any mid-level exceptions, meaning they can’t sign the coveted third star the Laker Nation was dreaming about. Moreover, if they do manage to find the star who is willing to sign for the $12.8 million mid-level exception, Pelinka will have to shed $25 million in salaries to acquire that benefit according to Bobby Marks.

Another interesting thing to note is that James can’t officially sign the contract until July 6th, 2024. There are talks that he could agree to finalize the deal at $1 million less to free up a $5.2 million mid-level exception that the Lakers will acquire for being below the second apron. It seems the Lakers will not be adding a third star this season. The roster could see minor adjustments with valuable role players or minimum contract players to help fill out the team.

Can the Lakers still make a major move?

The door isn’t completely shut on the Lakers making a blockbuster move or a trade that could alter their organization. Under their current limitations, the Lakers can’t accept more salary than what they send out in trades. But if Pelinka is willing to keep one roster spot open for the remainder of the season, they could spark something.

Let’s say the front office decides to offload D’Angelo Russell‘s contract along with Rui Hachimura. Their combined salary totals to roughly $35 million. If teams are willing to discuss trades around them, the Lakers can get the desired third star provided he doesn’t surpass the culminated salary of the players they send out.

If they remain confident in their current roster and are satisfied with signing minimum contract players, James’ one million pay cut could allow them the privilege to sign a role player to the taxpayer exception and complete their roster. The likelihood of anything major happening now is scarce, to be frank.

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There might be slight movements, but nothing enticing is bound to happen in Laker land. This reflects a calculated strategy within the constraints set by the significant financial commitments to key players like LeBron and potentially Bronny James. Will the Lakers be able to navigate these financial hurdles to make any impactful changes?

But before you go, be sure to check this video of Leonardo Armato’s take on the deadly duo Shaq and Kobe and their apparent beef in our exclusive interview with him.