The Los Angeles Lakers have signed guard Kobe Bufkin to an NBA contract, the team announced Wednesday. Financial details were not released, but league sources indicated the agreement is a two-year minimum deal that includes a team option for the 2026-27 season.
Bufkin, 22, has spent most of this year with the Lakers’ G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, where he has averaged 26.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists while shooting 51.3% from the field and 43.1% from three-point range in 21 games.
Originally taken 15th overall by the Atlanta Hawks in the 2023 NBA Draft out of Michigan, the 6-foot-4 guard appeared in only 27 NBA contests over his first two seasons. He was dealt to the Brooklyn Nets last summer and later waived before joining South Bay.
This season, Bufkin earned 10-day contracts with both the Memphis Grizzlies and the Lakers. Los Angeles has now secured him for at least the remainder of 2025-26, with the option to keep him through 2026-27.
Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka chose to use the club’s 15th roster spot on Bufkin instead of pursuing the buyout market, citing the risk of losing the guard to other teams that currently have vacancies.
Earlier at the trade deadline, the Lakers made only one move, sending Gabe Vincent to the Hawks for Luke Kennard and a 2023 second-round pick. Pelinka said the front office was “aggressive” in discussions but declined offers that did not align with the franchise’s short- and long-term plans.
Bufkin now joins a Lakers backcourt searching for young, two-way contributors, and he is expected to have an opportunity to cement his role during the final stretch of the season.
Source: LakersNation.com
