"That came back to bite the Lakers" - Magic Johnson reveals warning LA's front office about trading Alex Caruso & dismantling championship roster

The LA Lakers had several defensive problems during the 2024-25 NBA season. However, it started when management disbanded the roster that allowed them to win the Larry O'Brien trophy in 2020. On Thursday's episode of "ESPN's First Take," former star Magic Johnson discussed how not keeping the band together has haunted the organization.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso served important roles for the Lakers. Both proved their value with their reliable offense and unwavering defense. However, Los Angeles went a different route. The front office traded KCP to the Washington Wizards for Russell Westbrook. Caruso, meanwhile, signed with the Chicago Bulls after the team let him leave in the 2021 free agency.

Johnson explained to Stephen A. Smith how he warned the team of losing the two players, specifically Caruso.

"The thing that hurt the Lakers the most was losing KCP (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope)," Johnson said, "and then we're watching the other guy for Oklahoma City right now in [Alex] Caruso. They were our best on-ball defenders and I told them that, 'if you gon' lose KCP signing for more money, then you gotta keep Caruso.'"

"But they assigned Talen Horton [Tucker] to that $9 million, instead of giving it to Caruso and that came back to bite the Lakers."

In the 2025 NBA playoffs, fans saw the value of the player the Lakers lost. KCP is one of the veteran stars for the Orlando Magic. Although he didn't have the best postseason outing, he was instrumental to the young team's success this season.

Meanwhile, Caruso is a key player for the OKC Thunder. Off the bench, he's been a tough defensive guard who has helped the Thunder reach the NBA Finals. Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green even complimented the 6-foot-5 guard as being the third most important player for OKC.

Lakers legend has a message for Luka Doncic

One of the biggest concerns in Luka Doncic's career has been his ability to be in shape. It was allegedly one of the reasons why the Dallas Mavericks gave up on him and traded him to the Lakers.

During his guest appearance on the ESPN show, Johnson had a message for the five-time All-Star.

“Luka gotta understand this is not Dallas." Johnson said (Timestamp: 22:18). "To your point, Kobe, superstar who led us, Shaq led us to a championship, LeBron led us. And that’s what’s missing here. We shouldn’t have to tell you to be in shape, you should have been about that, right?”

Recent photos have shown that Doncic has slimmed down following the Lakers' early playoff exit. The five-time All-NBA is in Europe, where he's reportedly training constantly during his free time.