The Los Angeles Lakers have reached out to the Portland Trail Blazers to inquire about the availability of center Robert Williams III, according to Anthony Irwin of Clutch Points.
Irwin reports that Williams is among at least three centers the Lakers have shown interest in as they look to replace Anthony Davis, who was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in the Luka Dončić deal four months ago.
Sources familiar with the situation say the Lakers’ plan is to acquire a starting-caliber center via trade—having held talks regarding players like Nic Claxton, Robert Williams, and Walker Kessler. They then hope to use the taxpayer midlevel exception to sign a backup, with Brook Lopez and Clint Capela emerging as top targets for that role. While the approach is sound and viewed as feasible, the team’s urgent need at the position—stemming from years of neglecting frontcourt depth—makes the execution more complex.
Williams, acquired by Portland in the Damian Lillard trade, was limited to just 20 games last season due to injury. The former All-Defensive Second Team selection averaged 17.6 minutes per game, contributing 5.8 points on 64.1% shooting, along with 5.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.7 blocks.
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