Lakers have been active in the offseason despite being above the salary cap. They split their $14.1 million mid-level exception between Ayton and LaRavia, signing Marcus Smart for $10.5 million. To create space for Smart, they waived Shake Milton and Jordan Goodwin, now sitting $1.1 million below the first apron with a hard cap preventing them from exceeding it until 2026. The Lakers can still make trades and sign players from the buyout market without restrictions faced by teams above the apron.
The Lakers split their $14.1 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception between Deandre Ayton and Jake LaRavia, and signed Marcus Smart to a two-year, $10.5 million deal via the bi-annual exception.
To carve out space under the first apron for Smart, the Lakers had to waive Shake Milton and Jordan Goodwin, resulting in them sitting $1.1 million below the first apron.
Since they're hard-capped, they cannot cross the first apron under any circumstance between now and June 30, 2026, affecting their future team-building.
Despite experiencing a tight salary cap situation, the Lakers have strategies to navigate contract aggregations and manage trade and buyout options without crossing the first apron.
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