Two Names Arrive, Two Depart, and the Clock Ticks Toward…

By the Lakers Nightly Desk · Tuesday, September 29

In a single 36-hour stretch, the Lakers turned over two roster spots twice. William Kyle and Cole Swider arrived on Exhibit 10 contracts on September 28, and by September 29 Meechie Johnson and Chase Ross, who carried the same kind of deal, were gone.

Austin Reaves of the Lakers — Austin Reaves. Photo: ReaganHoang10, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The Exhibit 10 Shuffle

Johnson and Ross each carried a $1.4 million salary for this season under their Exhibit 10 deals before their exits were logged September 29. Kyle and Swider stepped into the openings a day earlier, both non-guaranteed camp adds fighting for a spot on the fifteen-man roster. None of it moves the bigger number: payroll stands at $204.0 million, past the $200.4 million tax threshold, with the $49.8 million extension belonging to Doncic as the largest piece on the books.

Countdown to October

Camp now points at a calendar. The preseason opens October 5 at Sacramento, followed by a back-to-back look at Golden State on October 6 and a home preseason game against the Kings on October 8, carried on ESPN2. A fourth preseason tune-up against the Warriors comes October 13, four exhibitions in all before the regular season opener October 21 against Golden State on ESPN.

Reaves Steps Forward

The Los Angeles Times reported September 29 that Reaves and Doncic are ready to take charge of a new-look Lakers, a framing that fits a locker room already built to lean on both. Reaves closes last season averaging 23.3 points and 5.5 assists, and enters his first year without LeBron James as a full-time second option rather than a complement. Whether that workload distribution survives four preseason games and a Kessler frontcourt still finding its footing is the open question camp has yet to answer.

Why did Meechie Johnson and Chase Ross leave the Lakers?

Both held Exhibit 10 contracts worth $1.4 million for this season, and their exits were logged September 29 as camp turned over spots for new signees William Kyle and Cole Swider.

When do the Lakers play their first game of the 2026-27 season?

The preseason opens October 5 at Sacramento, and the regular season opener comes October 21 at home against the Warriors on ESPN.

By the Lakers Nightly Desk, written from the club's data and the reports on file, with every name and number checked against them. How the desks work.