Lakers ‘On the Clock' as Luka Doncic's Wandering Eye Becomes Major Threat

The Los Angeles Lakers‘ summer is quickly building up to be one of the most consequential offseasons in recent memory.

LeBron James, fresh off leading the Lakers on another deep playoff run at 41 years old, is waiting for L.A. to come to him with a contract. Austin Reaves, who just averaged 23.3 points a night on 49% shooting and turned himself into a legitimate second star, is expected to declining his option and test the open market. Rui Hachimura, Luke Kennard, and Maxi Kleber are all set to become unrestricted free agents as well, while Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart each hold player options.

What happens next will depend entirely on how the Lakers plan to build their future around Luka Doncic.

Now another wrinkle has been added. The Athletic’s Dan Woike dropped a report on Sunday that noted how Doncic isn’t just patiently waiting around. According to Woike, the “on the clock” framing he and colleague Sam Amick floated around right after last season hasn’t changed at all, and there’s now real concern that Doncic might have a “wandering eye” if the Lakers can’t follow through on the championship vision they sold him on last summer.

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Doncic is still locked in for two more seasons, with a player option for a third. Before the 2028 season, he becomes eligible for a supermax extension that could be worth over $417 million. That’s a ridiculous amount of money to walk away from, and realistically, it’s why nobody expects Doncic to demand a trade right now.

But Woike’s point is bigger than dollars. Doncic got traded out of Dallas, a team built entirely around him, and ended up somewhere that now has to prove it can do the same thing. If the Lakers spend this summer just running it back instead of making moves to genuinely get better, things could change quickly.

Doncic won’t force his way out this year, and probably not next year either. But the NBA has a long history of stars forcing their way out if the front office can’t make the necessary changes. Anthony Davis did it with the Pelicans in 2019. James Harden did it in 2021 with the Rockets. Damian Lillard did it in 2023 with the Blazers. And right now, Giannis Antetokounmpo is on the verge of leaving Milwaukee because the Bucks couldn’t build a contender around him.

And just like that, Lakers fans may have to cope with the fact that the same thing could happen with Doncic if the front office doesn’t show they’re all in.

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This story was originally published June 21, 2026 at 5:20 PM.