Lakers hopeful gets candid about final roster chances

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Lakers hopeful gets candid about final roster chances

David Yapkowitz, ClutchPoints · ClutchPoints

Fri, Oct 16, 2026 ·

4 min read

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LOS ANGELES – Prior to the start of the regular season next week, the Los Angeles Lakers have a roster decision to make. They currently sit at 16 standard contracts, one over the permitted maximum. In the days leading up to the Lakers' season opener, several names have been floated around in terms of possibly being on the final roster bubble, with third-year guard Dalton Knecht's name coming up quite a bit. But another name whose spot on the Lakers' roster might not be 100 percent secure is Jaden Hardy .

The Lakers initially acquired Jaden Hardy in the offseason via trade with the Washington Wizards. The Lakers sent Deandre Ayton to the Wizards in return and received two second round picks in addition to Hardy. The impetus for the Lakers was believed to be two-fold. The first being simply to get out from under Ayton's contract, and the second was to recoup some draft capital in the form of the second-round picks.

Hardy's inclusion in the trade was more of an afterthought, and during training camp thus far, the team has reportedly been looking to move his contract , as per Keith Smith of Spotrac.

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And with the Lakers' facing a roster crunch in the event no trade materializes, he understands the situation he is potentially facing. It was something he was aware of when he first joined the team.

"Really just for me, I just kind of came here with a clear head, clear mind being a new situation, new opportunity," Hardy said following Lakers' shootaround on Tuesday. "It's a blessing to be here. I've been coming in here every day working and putting my head down."

In Hardy's first official outing with the Lakers, a preseason win against the Sacramento Kings on Oct. 5, he finished with eight points while shooting 3-of-6 from the field, including 2-of-5 from the 3-point line. That was followed up with a 13-point performance on a back-to-back, to go along with four rebounds and three assists despite not shooting as well (4-of-12 from the field, 1-of-6 from 3-point range).

In the Lakers' third preseason game, another win against the Kings, the former G League Ignite standout finished with only six points, but he did get to the free-throw line six times. And in the most recent preseason game, a loss to the Golden State Warriors in Las Vegas, he had another double-digit scoring outing with 10 points alongside two rebounds and two assists.

On a team that has a dearth of ball-handlers and players who can generate offense, Hardy is trying to blend his skill set with the rest of the team.

"For me, obviously just trying to be somebody that they can have another ball-handler. Obviously still learning the system, but I'm very confident in what's going on with the guys whenever I'm out there," Hardy said. "Trying to make plays, whatever, but also being aggressive. Just trying to play my game as well."

The No. 37 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, Hardy is entering his fifth season in the league. He had played his entire career with the Dallas Mavericks prior to last season's deadline deal that sent him to the Wizards. And he put in a strong showing, albeit a small sample size.

The 23-year-old appeared in 23 games off the bench for the Wizards after the deadline, at a little over 20 minutes per game, the most of his career. He averaged a career-high 12.6 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists with splits of 44.3 percent shooting from the field, 42 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 68.6 percent shooting from the free-throw line.

But as the days and hours tick down until the time the Lakers need to submit their final roster, there's sure to be some nerves involved. But for Hardy, he's doing his best to let his game do the talking and not dwell on things that could be out of his control.

"It's in God's hands, really," Hardy said. "I'm blessed to be here."

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