Who will partner with Doncic after James? Thick eyebrows enter the palace second? Jokic Antetokounmpo goes to the Lakers?

Translator's note: The original text was published on Lakers Daily. The data in the article were as of the time of the original text (September 6 local time). The dates and times involved were local time

Although the star forward of the Los Angeles Lakers LeBron James still performed well, it may not be too late for the team to start planning the "post-James era". James, 40, has only one season left on his current contract, and he may retire from the league in the summer of 2026 or join another team in the free agency.

Once James leaves the team in any way, which player is the rational partner of star guard Luca Doncic in the Lakers' minds? Here are three top players who will be very suitable for playing alongside Doncic for the Lakers.

Anthony Davis

Some people may be surprised to see Davis appear on this list because he was a member of the Lakers less than a year ago. He is one of the main bargaining chips the Lakers gave to get Doncic before the 2025 trade deadline.

Last season, Davis was also troubled by injuries again. And we have reason to believe that Davis' injury may not improve as he gets older. Davis is 32 years old and will turn 33 in March this year.

But the healthy Davis will be an attractive partner around Doncic, which is largely due to his outstanding defensive ability. Few players in the league can do better than Davis in protecting the basket and making up for teammates’ defensive mistakes.

Davis will become a dominant scorer in the interior, and the team currently does not have a player who meets this standard. Lakers' new player DeAndre Ayton has had some good scoring seasons in the NBA, but he averaged only a career-low 14.4 points with the Portland Trail Blazers last season.

It is worth noting that while Davis' return makes sense for the Lakers on paper, it is unclear whether the 10-time All-Star is interested in rejoining a team that sent him away in a shocking way. Davis will be a free agent as early as 2027. Any attempt to get Davis through other ways has to be done through a deal, but that seems almost impossible.

Nicola Jokic

Among the players mentioned in this article, getting Jokic is perhaps the most unrealistic fantasy of the Lakers. There is no reason to think that Jokic is overly eager to change the environment, because he is arguably the best player on earth and just helped the Denver Nuggets win the championship not long ago in 2023.

Despite this, Doncic's partnership with Jokic will still give the Lakers two epoch-making offensive geniuses, and it is hard to believe that any team can limit this offensive firepower of the Lakers.

Doncic can easily score 30 points and 10 assists in a single game, and Jokic can do it too - he even achieved a triple-double average last season. Since both players are extremely talented as organizers, it would be unwise to double-team any of them. But at the same time, it is extremely difficult to prevent Doncic and Jokic from causing damage in one-on-one situations.

In short, if the Lakers sit with Doncic and Jokic, it will be difficult for other teams to find effective defensive strategies. If fans hope that Jokic can join the Lakers and join forces with Doncic one day, then the only hope they can have is that the two themselves have a close relationship.

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Antetokounmpo seems to be the most likely player here to change the team in the near future. Antetokounmpo has been in a trade rumor this offseason due to the mediocre performance of the Milwaukee Bucks in the past few seasons, and their future doesn't look so bright given the current talent shortage of the Bucks.

The timing may be right, and Antetokounmpo has a chance to join the Lakers next offseason. If Antetokounmpo stays with the Bucks for another season and the Bucks are not doing well again, he may apply for a trade when James leaves the Lakers in the 2026 offseason. Another possible scenario is that Antetokounmpo may refuse to execute his player option after the 2026-27 season and become a full free agent in the offseason in 2027 before signing with the Lakers.

Antetokounmpo is perhaps the most outstanding offensive and defensive player in the league today, and his joining will put the Lakers in an excellent position to compete for the championship in the next few years. But in any potential trade, the Lakers may have to pay a huge price to get Antetokounmpo, so pursuing him in the free market in the future may be a smarter move.

Author: Jesse Cinquini

Translator: GWayNe