Lakers' Plan B if Kuminga Deal Stalls: Naji Marshall

The Lakers' pursuit of Jonathan Kuminga remains active, but with each passing day it becomes clearer why the deal hasn't closed. As negotiations drag on, a backup plan emerges: Naji Marshall.

The fine print explaining the holdup

Brian Windhorst laid out the details on ESPN's The Hoop Collective podcast. The window for a sign-and-trade with Atlanta using Jaden Hardy remains open, the insider confirmed, but with two significant obstacles. The first is financial: the deal would push the Hawks into the luxury tax unless a third team absorbs some salary, explaining the three-team structure already being discussed. The second is contractual: Kuminga's contract in a sign-and-trade would need to cover three years and couldn't include player options—conditions that severely limit contract flexibility.

Translation: it's not enough for the Lakers and Hawks to want it. A third team is needed to take on salary in exchange for help, and a player willing to commit for three years with no exit doors, when this summer he was even linked to the Lakers themselves on a two-year, $20 million deal that never materialized. Minnesota, meanwhile, continues lurking as the other realistic destination.

Marshall, the backup with identical profile

If the primary path stalls, BasketNews presents the alternative: Naji Marshall, a 28-year-old small forward standing 6'6" for the Dallas Mavericks, in a hypothetical scenario that would send Jake LaRavia and second-round picks from the Wizards in 2031 and 2032 to Texas.

It's worth emphasizing the conditional nature, because there's no known negotiation—it's a fit analysis. But the fit, it must be said, is clean. Marshall is exactly what Los Angeles has been seeking since July: an athletic, tough small forward on a reasonable contract who can defend the wing alongside Dončić and Reaves, and Dallas is in the midst of a transition toward the Cooper Flagg project, selling veteran pieces as demonstrated by the Klay Thompson buyout. It would also be the direct answer to the weakness we highlighted in our Western Conference review: nobody on this Lakers roster can defend.

The market snapshot as of August 26: Kuminga as the target, Marshall as the safety net, and a clock ticking toward late September campus openings.