With Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren’s rookie max extensions kicking in, their combined $20.3 million salary this season will balloon to $82.5 million next season. Thus, the Oklahoma City Thunder had to act to avoid paying the tax for the first time since 2020. Consequently, the first domino to fall was the trade of Aaron Wiggins. Now, Lu Dort is another option on the chopping block for OKC, and the Los Angeles Lakers can reap the benefit.

“I’m also told that the Lakers have called the Thunder about swingman Lu Dort’s availability.” According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, the Lakers have called the Thunder about a potential trade for Dort.

“Oklahoma City is facing a well-chronicled roster crunch, with 15 players currently under contract and two first-round picks to make at Nos. 12 and 17 barring draft-night trade activity, sparking a belief that the Thunder might be open to trading Dort after picking up his $17.2 million team option to make it easier to re-sign big man Isaiah Hartenstein.”

Currently, Oklahoma City holds a $28.5 million team option on Hartenstein. And the sources report I-Hart is the one who can be retained by either picking up the option or working out a longer-term deal with him at a lower annual salary.

Veteran analyst Bobby Marks highlighted that the Wiggins trade slashed their projected penalty from $213M to $152M while preserving their No. 12 and 17 draft picks.

Similarly, Keith Smith stated that declining team options on Lu Dort, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Kenrich Williams would leave the Oklahoma City Thunder approximately $3.7 million under the luxury tax line. Once again, this suggests that Lu Dort’s time with the Thunder is coming to an end.

Recently, even Michael Scotto reported, “Dort has a team option for $17.22 million for the upcoming season that several front executives who spoke with HoopsHype are projecting the Thunder to exercise, then consider flipping Dort on the trade market. Should such a scenario happen, Dort has been linked with the Lakers and several other teams.”

Thunder’s cap space problem can lead to Lu Dort’s arrival for the Lakers

The Thunder were sitting $28.5 million above the projected 2027 second apron threshold, a financial ceiling that severely limits roster-building options, with it widely expected that only two of Luguentz Dort, Isaiah Hartenstein, Isaiah Joe, Aaron Wiggins, and Kenrich Williams could realistically be retained.

Shipping Wiggins to Atlanta for a pair of future second-round picks, no salary coming back offers a convenient route: a meaningful reduction in their luxury tax exposure and genuine breathing room heading into next offseason.

This move creates substantial flexibility, positioning OKC $11.7M under the first apron and $24.7M under the second apron prior to any re-signings of those players. Since it was a down year for Lu Dort, Cason Wallace surpassed him in the hierarchy.

The latter’s contract for next season is just $7,420,806. Meaning, if the Thunder move on from Dort, they save their salary and also have an upgrade ready.

But the Canadian’s skillset is what the Lakers currently need in their team. Just as former DPOY Marcus Smart changed the outlook, Lu Dort, a former All-Defensive First Team selection, would instantly become LA’s best perimeter stopper.

The Lakers have the flexible cap space to absorb Dort’s contract outright, which would allow OKC to completely dump the salary off their books to help them comfortably re-sign big man Isaiah Hartenstein.