Lakers urged to pursue 6-foot-10 center, potential Luka Doncic lob partner by NBA writer

The Los Angeles Lakers' glaring hole at the center position has been temporarily filled by ex-Phoenix Suns draft pick Deandre Ayton after the franchise acquired the former No. 1 overall selection in the 2018 NBA Draft on a two-year, $16.2 million deal this past summer.

While the Lakers have supplied their 26-year-old generational talent and elite play-maker Luka Dončić with a suitable screen-and-roll partner for the next few seasons, the team's general manager Rob Pelinka might have a chance to snag a bigger, younger fish come next summer.

Los Angeles' need for their center of the future may grow even stronger if the Ayton signing refuses to pan out, and one NBA writer has posited the Lakers as a potential suitor for a rising 21-year-old big man and walking double-double from the Detroit Pistons who may be on the way towards a restricted free agency bid.

"Restricted free agency is one of the trickier battlegrounds of the NBA offseason," FanSided's Svyatoslav Rovenchuk wrote Monday afternoon.

"As the name implies, teams hold rights to retain their own players by matching any offer sheet given to them. Despite that, the process is not always as simple and straightforward as that."

"If Los Angeles wants to fill their long-term starting center spot with someone other than Deandre Ayton, Walker Kessler and Jalen Duren are trending towards being available."

"Both centers are built in the mold of players who would thrive with Doncic."

With Duren and the Pistons not expected to come to an agreement on a second contract before the Oct. 20 deadline, the Lakers could begin to prepare their offer sheet for the quickly developing young center.

Standing at 6-foot-10 and weighing 250 pounds, Duren is a bruising, high-flying big man with a wonderful mix of strength and athleticism, two traits that have allowed him to average a double-double for the past two seasons.

In 78 appearances with Detroit in 2024-25, Duren contributed 11.8 points, 10.3 rebounds and a career-high 1.1 blocks while shooting 69.2% from the field for a squad that landed the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference.

If the Lakers can provide him with an offer that the Pistons refuse to match as a restricted free agent in 2026, his fantastic agility and lob-finishing would become one of the most important components of the Lakers' Dončić-led offense for years to come.

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