Lakers Sign GM Rob Pelinka to Long-Term Extension

To the surprise of probably no one, the Los Angeles Lakers have agreed to a long-term contract extension with general manager Rob Pelinka, per ESPN's Shams Charania.

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed Rob Pelinka to a contract extension, with his new title as president of basketball operations along with general manager, sources tell ESPN. Lakers leadership is now signed long-term with Pelinka and coach JJ Redick. pic.twitter.com/BCpZNgxCzE
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 18, 2025

Charania notes that Pelinka has also earned a new title. He had been the vice president of basketball operations, but is now officially dropping the "vice."

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Los Angeles made the news official moments after Charania's report in a team press release, per Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times.

Lakers announce they’ve reached an extension agreement with Rob Pelinka. pic.twitter.com/mAXxfQ53sG
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) April 18, 2025

"For eight seasons, I have relied on Rob's vision and leadership to do what's best for the Lakers organization," L.A. majority owner Jeanie Buss noted in the presser. "I value his partnership and professionalism and believe in his ability to deliver championship-caliber basketball for Los Angeles and Lakers fans everywhere."

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In fairness, Pelinka has already delivered one championship to the Lakers while stewarding the front office. He oversaw the club's 2019-20 title-winning season, its first with future Hall of Famers LeBron James and Anthony Davis playing together.

Pelinka finished just seventh in Executive of the Year voting that season, despite drastically overhauling the team from its 2018-19 iteration to build a championship roster that included James, Davis, Danny Green, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, JaVale McGee, Rajon Rondo, Kyle Kuzma, Alex Caruso, Dwight Howard and Markieff Morris.

None of those players were on the Lakers prior to Pelinka's arrival in 2017, when he was initially brought in as GM to serve under Hall of Fame Lakers guard Magic Johnson, who had been hired as team president. Johnson quit at the end of the 2019-20 season. Pelinka had been Hall of Fame L.A. superstar shooting guard Kobe Bryant's agent while he won his final two championships in 2009 and 2010.

His transition to a front office role may have been greeted with skepticism by some, but he has certainly earned his stripes at this point, even if he has occasionally been dinged for surrendering too many assets or overvaluing aging veterans.

After Los Angeles struggled to defend its crown in 2020-21, Pelinka boldly blew up the roster, trading major pieces like Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, Caldwell-Pope and a first-round draft pick to the Washington Wizards in exchange for a rapidly declining Russell Westbrook. L.A. went just 33-49 and missed the playoffs in 2021-22. Pelinka responded by firing head coach Frank Vogel, although the clear problem was the Westbrook acquisition and the club's decision to sign other ancient players.

Pelinka next hired multi-time champion assistant coach Darvin Ham for the 2022-23 season, and made a variety of deals to balance out his roster and ditch Westbrook, along with fellow past-their-prime point guards Patrick Beverley and Kendrick Nunn.

The newly-reconfigured Lakers, led by James, Davis, rising second-year guard Austin Reaves (a savvy undrafted pick-up), and new trade acquisition Rui Hachimura, salvaged the rest of their season. Los Angeles eventually advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals as a No. 7 seed.

Pelinka somehow signed restricted free agent Reaves to a stunningly below-market deal as a restricted free agent. The Lakers failed to advance out of the first round the next season, 2023-24, and Pelinka pivoted quickly to fire yet another head coach. He brought in former player JJ Redick and drafted intriguing rookie guards Dalton Knecht and Bronny James this summer.

But the main reason he's earning this extension is surely one of the most one-sided trades in NBA history.

Pelinka somehow offloaded 32-year-old Davis, 3-and-D wing Max Christie, and a single first-round draft pick in 2029 to the Dallas Mavericks (plus the Lakers' rights to the Clippers' 2025 second-round pick and former point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino to the Utah Jazz) in exchange for five-time All-NBA First Team superstar guard Luka Doncic, in or not yet even at his absolute prime at age 26 (fresh off a Finals appearance with Dallas in 2024), plus big men Maxi Kleber and a returning Markieff Morris.

Pelinka used a Kobe Bryant connection to do it, essentially exploiting a longstanding friendship with Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison — who had been an executive liaison to Bryant for Nike —to secure an insanely beneficial deal to L.A. The agreement instantly made the Lakers fringe title contenders.

Los Angeles finished with a 50-32 regular season record and the Western Conference's No. 3 seed. Whatever happens this year, Pelinka has helped guarantee that the Lakers will remain in the championship conversation for probably the next decade.

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