The Los Angeles Lakers are acquiring center Mark Williams from the Charlotte Hornets, according to a person with knowledge of the deal who spoke to The Associated Press. In return, Charlotte will receive rookie Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish and draft considerations.
The source requested anonymity on Wednesday night because the trade had not yet been finalized. It is the latest move in a busy stretch for the Lakers.
Williams is a Virginia Beach native who played high school basketball at Norfolk Academy. He went on to Duke, where he helped lead the Blue Devils to the 2022 Final Four and was named ACC Defensive Player of the Year that season.
Charlotte will also receive the Lakers' first-round pick in 2031 and a first-round pick swap in 2030. Williams is regarded as one of the NBA's more intriguing young centers.
The trade follows a sweeping overhaul of the Lakers' roster. Last Saturday, the team landed Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks in a blockbuster deal that sent Anthony Davis the other way. Since Christmas, Los Angeles has rebuilt its core around Doncic and 40-year-old LeBron James, a group that could contend for a title this season.
Williams addresses a clear need. After Davis left and Christian Wood was sidelined long term, Jaxson Hayes was briefly the Lakers' only veteran center. Williams, who is 7-foot-2, will also be expected to anchor a defense that was built heavily around Davis' rim protection.
His time in Charlotte has been hampered by injuries, mostly back problems, which limited him to 84 games across three seasons. When healthy, he has produced. This season he is averaging 16 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 22 games, and he has thrived in pick-and-roll situations alongside LaMelo Ball. He has recorded seven double-doubles in his last 11 games, including 31 points and 13 rebounds against the Jazz, and scored 38 points in a loss to Memphis last month. His play has nonetheless been inconsistent: against Milwaukee on Wednesday he managed six points and five rebounds in 25 minutes. He should be a fit as a lob and pick-and-roll target for Doncic, and he already knows Lakers coach JJ Redick as a fellow Duke product. Late Wednesday, Williams posted gold and purple hearts on social media.
For Charlotte, the deal continues a long-term building effort under new owners Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall. The Hornets previously sent 7-foot center Nick Richards and a 2025 second-round pick to Phoenix last month for Josh Okogie and three future second-round picks. They now hold their own first-round picks for the next seven years, plus a top-14 protected 2027 first-rounder from Miami (unprotected in 2028), a top-two protected 2027 pick from Dallas, the 2030 swap right and the Lakers' 2031 pick.
Knecht, the Lakers' first-round selection last summer, is averaging 9.4 points and 3.1 rebounds as a rookie. He started 12 games and scored 37 points with a record-tying nine three-pointers in November, but his minutes have shrunk in the new year. Reddish is averaging 3.3 points in his second season with the Lakers and has played far less under Redick than he did under former coach Darvin Ham.
Doncic has missed games since Christmas with a strained left calf and is expected to debut for the Lakers on Saturday against Indiana, though Redick said that decision will wait until Saturday morning. Los Angeles has now traded seven of the 13 players on its opening-night roster, and the deal opens a roster spot for another depth addition. The Hornets visit the Lakers on Feb. 19.
