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CLEVELAND, OHIO - MARCH 08: Keon Ellis #14 of the Cleveland Cavaliers argues a call with referee Tony Brothers #25 during the second quarter against the Boston Celtics at Rocket Arena on March 08, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio.
The Los Angeles Lakers tried, and failed to trade for guard Keon Ellis at the 2026 NBA trade deadline, as while they had interest, he was moved to the Cleveland Cavaliers instead.
However, with the offseason approaching, and Ellis an unrestricted free agent coming off an insanely cheap contract, there is an expectation that the Lakers will once again make a run at him this summer.
Ellis just finished the final season of a three-year, $5.1 million deal this season and will require a pay raise. But considering the Lakers’ cap space, he is expected to be one of their top free agent targets to pair with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves in the backcourt, and could be easily gettable if Rob Pelinka and the front office are willing to go after his services.
GettySACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 07: Keon Ellis #14 of the Cleveland Cavaliers celebrates after making a three-point shot in the second quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center on February 07, 2026 in Sacramento, California.
The Lakers were one of a few teams in the mix to land Ellis at the trade deadline, but their final offer ultimately fell short of what the Sacramento Kings got for the career 40% three-point shooter from the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Los Angeles was in the mix with the Cavs, New York Knicks, and a few other teams at the deadline. But now with him as an unrestricted free agent this offseason, the idea of adding the guard is a lot more realistic.
Writing for Bleacher Report, Dan Favale revealed the type of contract the Lakers could offer Ellis to land him in free agency as another guard behind their star duo of Doncic and Reaves. He mentioned that the 26-year-old’s offense hasn’t been super impactful or consistent in the first four years of his career, but with his defense, he’s worth the likely low-level contract his free agency market will yield.
“Slotting Ellis into a starting 2-guard spot is not an overreach of his skill set. He won’t run the offense as a ball-handler, but he can usually check any backcourt initiators who don’t spill into power-wing territory. Even then, we have seen his teams throw him at bigger bodies, including Luka Dončić, when in a pinch,” Favale wrote.
“(But) working around those limitations is an annoyance if your rotation is teeming with aggressive guards or you’re paying Ellis $10-plus million per year. When he’s making south of $6 million, he’s a plug-and-play talent worth betting on.”
In 72 games this season with the Kings and Cavaliers, Ellis averaged 6.7 points, 1.9 rebounds, one assist, and 1.2 steals in 20.5 minutes on 44/36.2/72.9 shooting splits, but if he’s coming off the bench as a spark plug, he could be well worth it for the Lakers to target him this offseason.
The Lakers have their eyes on several bigger name free agent targets and even potential blockbuster trade targets, but for the time being, a name like Ellis could be easily within the possibility of being a solid summer addition as the franchise retools their roster for the future.
Writing for Yahoo Sports, Frederick Okocha predicted the Lakers, as well as a few other teams, would be vying for Ellis’ services after an under-the-radar past season.
“The ripple effects of a shifting market have created an unexpected opportunity for teams seeking elite perimeter depth. The Lakers, Celtics, Clippers, Nets to battle for 40-percent 3-and-D swingman,” he wrote.
“The Lakers are actively looking to diversify their bench rotation after a top-heavy postseason run left them vulnerable against deeper rosters. If Rob Pelinka really wants to, Los Angeles can easily absorb Keon Ellis into their rotation while avoiding any hard-cap triggers beneath the first apron line.”
Additionally, while Ellis didn’t play a big part for Cleveland after he was added at the trade deadline, only averaging 7.4 minutes in 12 playoff games, his name might be one teams will forget about when looking at defensive-minded backcourt players on the market for a low price.
“With a potentially depleted market for his talents, the Lakers shouldn’t hesitate to bet on his potential when the competition is perhaps as low as it will ever be,” Maxwell Odgen of LakeShowLife wrote on Ellis’ currently low value but mentioning his catch-and-shoot success as a reason to make him a top free agent target.
“That’s an encouraging fact when one considers that the Lakers ranked dead last in the NBA in catch-and-shoot three-point field goals made in 2025-26. Finding a guard who can help resolve that issue would be an unavoidable win, as Los Angeles can plug Ellis in alongside Doncic or Austin Reaves.”
Even if he is asking for roughly $10 million a year over the course of a few seasons on a new contract, that’s an offer the Lakers could make for one of their top free agent targets. They could desperately use his defense, and that, along with the shooting prowess he showed earlier in his career, is the exact type of skillset Los Angeles is looking to add this summer.
Ellis will be connected with other teams over the offseason, but the Lakers have been linked to him for a while, and adding him on a cheap contract could be a sneaky addition that could pay dividends in the long run, playing behind Doncic and Reaves.
Eli Gregorski is a sports journalist covering the NBA for Heavy Sports. He has years of sports writing experience covering the NBA, NFL, college football and basketball, international soccer, and Formula One. He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder, where he was the assistant sports editor for the award-winning CU Independent student publication. More about Eli Gregorski
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