Despite the Los Angeles Lakers' hope that Deandre Ayton can solve their issues at center next season, at least one person who used to work for one of his former clubs is pessimistic about the 26-year-old making a positive impact.

Conversely, while James' future in L.A. still remains up in the air, it's expected that Doncic will re-sign with the team, according to ESPN's Dave McMenamin. The Lakers can offer Doncic a four-year, $229 million extension on Aug. 2, or he can sign a three-year, $165 million extension with a 2028 player option.

NBA free agency is officially underway. Players were legally allowed to begin negotiating with teams across the league as of Monday evening, and there will be a flurry of activity this week. The most surprising free agency news to date happened Tuesday morning when the Bucks said they were signing big man Myles Turner,