The Lakers officially announced! Two players have been assigned to the development league, and one player will be sidelined for over a month.

Yesterday, the Lakers won against the Warriors on their home court. The Lakers sacrificed Doncic and Ayton, and the Warriors gave up Curry and Butler. The first half looked like a clash between underdogs. The game became more exciting in the third quarter when LeBron James led a 6-0 run, scoring 12 points in that quarter.

In the final moments, with the outcome decided, the Lakers held the ball and deliberately used up 24 seconds, resulting in another turnover. Then the Warriors hit a tough three-pointer, which was puzzling. Kennard must have thought: Lucky for you, I didn’t block that shot.

To be honest, LeBron’s performance yesterday was average, even somewhat off. He went 6-for-17 from the field, 2-for-7 on three-pointers, 6-for-7 on free throws, finishing with 20 points, 7 rebounds, 10 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, and 7 turnovers. In the last two home games, LeBron has accumulated 15 turnovers. After a long stretch of eight consecutive away games, he’s finally back in Los Angeles with his wife by his side — those who understand, understand.

After the game, LeBron commented on his turnovers: “I just need to do a little better, that’s all. Of course, I don’t like turnovers. Thankfully, I had double-digit assists in both games.”

LeBron totaled 20 assists across these two games, with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.3, which is acceptable. Notably, LeBron’s career regular-season points have now reached 42,925.He is only 75 points away from the 43,000-point milestone. Three years ago on February 8th, LeBron surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the all-time leading scorer.

There was a funny moment after yesterday’s game: Curry was busy talking to LeBron and completely ignored Hayes, who kept reaching out awkwardly.

Back to business, let’s talk about the Lakers’ moves in the past two days.

The Lakers officially signed guard Kobe Bufkin, filling the team’s 15th roster spot. The contract is for two years, with the second year being a team option. This season, Kobe Bufkin has played 14 games for the South Bay Lakers in the development league, averaging 27.7 points, shooting 52.2% from the field and 43.1% from three-point range.

NBA reporter Eric Pincus analyzed that Kobe Bufkin’s salary is about $844,600, and the Lakers’ total salary is $632,600 below the luxury tax threshold. The roster is currently full, so the team cannot sign new players unless they waive someone to free up space. The earliest they can sign a new player is February 26th, when the league’s minimum salary will drop to $620,000. Additionally, this signing increases the Lakers’ luxury tax by $2.7 million.

Today, the Lakers also officially announced that guards Knecht and forward Adu Thiero have been assigned to the South Bay Lakers in the development league. According to ESPN sources, Adu Thiero has been out since December 30th due to a right medial collateral ligament sprain, and he participated in his first scrimmage since the injury earlier this week.

From December 30th last year until now, February 9th, Adu Thiero has been sidelined for over a month. He was the 6th pick in the second round of the 2025 draft and signed a three-year, $5.94 million contract with the Lakers, earning $1.27 million this season. So far this season, Adu has averaged 5.8 minutes per game, scoring 1.3 points, grabbing 1.2 rebounds, and dishing out 0.3 assists, with a shooting percentage of 38.9%.

This guy has explosive athleticism, his dunks look great, and occasionally he can battle inside against opposing centers. Although he has only played 15 games, with more time and opportunity, he still has potential to develop.

As of now, the Lakers’ roster includes LeBron James, Adu Thiero, and Kobe Bufkin. Look at that — LeBron, Adu, and Kobe are all here. It’s reasonable to think the Lakers have a shot at the championship this season, right?