Niwa Tait-Jones, a 25-year-old rookie forward, is on the Los Angeles Lakers roster as of Thursday, October 15. His contract is not on file yet, and he joins a Lakers roster of 22 players that is already over the luxury tax.
The move
Niwa Tait-Jones, a 25-year-old forward and a rookie, is on the Los Angeles Lakers roster as of Thursday, October 15, 2026, according to the official roster. He arrives from free agency, having held no prior NBA roster spot. No report preceded the move; it was detected directly from the roster listing, not from any transaction or injury report on file, and no source has been credited for it yet.
The money
Tait-Jones' contract is not on file yet; public salary data can lag a signing by a day. The Lakers carry $201.3 million in payroll across 16 contracts for 2026-27, over the luxury tax. The salary cap is set at $165.0 million, the tax line at $200.4 million, the first apron at $209.0 million and the second apron at $221.7 million, putting the club above the tax threshold already.
The fit
Tait-Jones has no NBA line from last season. At forward, the Lakers' rotation last season was led by LeBron James at 33.2 minutes and 20.9 points, with Rui Hachimura at 28.3 minutes and 11.5 points and Jake LaRavia at 25.1 minutes and 8.2 points. The roster now carries 22 players, against a standard limit of 15 plus three two-way spots.
Did a report precede Tait-Jones joining the Lakers?
No report preceded the move. It was detected from the official roster, not from any report on file.
What is Tait-Jones' contract with the Lakers?
His contract is not on file yet. Public salary data can lag a signing by a day.
What did Tait-Jones do last season?
He has no NBA line from last season.