Lakers acquire center Mark Williams from Hornets

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka acknowledged the team’s need for a big man on Tuesday morning during Luka Doncic’s introductory press conference.

And nearly 36 hours later, the Lakers filled that need, acquiring 7-foot, 241-pound center Mark Williams from the Charlotte Hornets to fortify their interior presence.

As part of the trade, which was first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania on Wednesday night, the Lakers will send the Hornets rookie wing Dalton Knecht, veteran wing Cam Reddish, their 2031 unprotected first-round draft pick and a 2030 first-round pick swap.

Williams quickly reacted to the trade on social media, posting purple and yellow hearts on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday night.

The Lakers will open a roster spot after the trade is official.

Williams, who was drafted with the No. 15 pick out of Duke in 2022, is averaging 16 points (59.7% shooting), 9.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 blocked shots per game in his third NBA season.

He’s averaged 11.7 points (62.6% shooting), 8.4 rebounds, 1.1 blocked shots and 1.1 assists for his career.

Williams fits the archetype of big men who have thrived alongside Doncic: an athletic and mobile lob threat who can make their presence felt at the rim.

“Versatility, mobility, a vertical lob threat, I think that’s a key to the spacing that Luka likes to play,” Pelinka responded when asked on Tuesday what he was looking for from a center. “Competitive. Those are some of the core things there. Those players are hard to find. But we’ll accomplish the task that’s before us. We’ll find a way.”

And the Lakers found their guy.

At 23 years old, Williams fits the Lakers’ long-term goal of adding players who can contribute now to a Lakers team co-starred by LeBron James and Doncic while also fitting the age timeline of the 25-year-old Doncic, who the Lakers acquired in a blockbuster trade over the weekend in a deal that sent All-Star big man Anthony Davis and third-year wing Max Christie to the Dallas Mavericks.

Williams is in the third year of the four-year, $18 million rookie scale contract he signed after being drafted.

He has a $4.1 million salary for this season and a $6.3 million salary for 2025-26. Williams will become eligible to sign a rookie-scale contract extension this summer. If the Lakers and Williams don’t agree to a contract extension by the day before the 2025-26 season starts, Williams could become a restricted free agent during the summer of 2026, which is an offseason when the Lakers could have significant roster flexibility.

Williams is expected to step into the starting center role that Jaxson Hayes has occupied over the last three games.

Hayes can move back into the backup center role he’s played for most of the season. The Lakers also have big men Christian Koloko and Trey Jemison III signed to two-way contracts.

Since becoming a full-time starter on Dec. 13, Williams has averaged 17.4 points (59.7% shooting), 10.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.4 blocked shots in 19 games. He’s one of the league’s best offensive rebounders and is in a three-way tie with Memphis’ Zach Edey and Atlanta’s Clint Capela for the ninth-most offensive rebounds in the league (3.3 per game).

The concerns with Williams begin with this durability.

Williams has only played in 84 NBA games: 43 as a rookie (he also played 11 G League games), 19 the following year and 23 of the Hornets’ 48 games this season.

He dealt with multiple sprained left ankles as a rookie and had surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb during the offseason after his first season. Williams missed most of last season because of a lower back issue. He sat out the first 20 games of this season because of a strained tendon in his left foot before playing in 23 of 28 games.

Williams also struggles in a variety of areas defensively.

But the Lakers are making a bet that Williams will continue to develop and overcome his early-career injury woes.

In order to acquire Williams, the Lakers relinquished their most valuable draft asset – their last tradeable first-round pick (2031). They sent Dallas their 2029 pick in the trade for Doncic; their ’27 pick, which they sent to the Utah Jazz two seasons ago, is protected 1-4 but is expected to convey; the Atlanta Hawks own their ’25 pick.

The lone pick the Lakers currently have access to ahead of Thursday’s noon PT trade deadline is their own 2025 second-round pick. They could also offer pick swaps in 2026 and ’28.

Knecht, who the Lakers selected with the No. 17 pick in the 2024 draft eight months ago, started to come out of a shooting slump recently, scoring in double figures in six of the past nine games. The 23-year-old wing averaged 9.4 points (46.5% shooting, 35.8% from 3-point range) and 3.1 rebounds, playing in all 48 of the Lakers’ games.

Reddish, who is in his sixth season, played in 31 games and hadn’t been in the rotation since early January.

The Lakers play host to the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night at Crypto.com Arena.