When building a roster, restricted free agency can be a tricky tool.
Restricted free agency usually involves talented younger players who can be difference-makers.
But this has become an increasingly rare route for players to change teams.
Teams are less inclined to issue an offer sheet because the player’s original team has 48 hours to match it, which ties up the offering team’s cap space and halts their free agency plans for up to two days.
The last time a restricted free agent signed an offer sheet was Paul Reed in 2023, with his original team (76ers) matching the Jazz’s deal to re-sign the big man.
If a player even reaches the point of signing an offer sheet, their incumbent team usually matches
It’s been nearly six years since a player changed teams via restricted free agency, when Bogdan Bogdanovic signed a four-year, $72 million offer sheet with the Hawks that the Kings decided not to match.
A restricted free agent is more likely to change teams via a sign and trade than an offer sheet: Grant Williams from the Celtics to the Mavericks in a three-team deal that involved the Spurs in 2023; Collin Sexton from the Cavaliers to the Jazz as part of the deal that sent Donovan Mitchell to Cleveland in 2022; Devonte’ Graham (Hornets to Pelicans) and Lonzo Ball (Pelicans to Hornets) in 2021.
This route allows the incumbent team to receive something in return for the departing player, lets the new team avoid tying up its cap space while waiting for the incumbent team’s decision on an offer sheet and doesn’t leave the player in limbo.
While restricted free agency remains a challenging path to add players, it isn’t impossible, though players such as the Jazz’s Walker Kessler and the Pistons’ Jalen Duren may be out of reach.
Here are a few restricted free agents the Lakers should keep an eye on:
Peyton Watson, Nuggets, wing
2025-26 stats: 14.6 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.1 BPG, 29.6 MPG
Watson has gone from one of the league’s better young 3-and-D wings to a player who’s shown the potential to do so much more.
He was instrumental to the Nuggets’ success throughout 2025-26, especially in January when they went 10-6 while three-time league MVP Nikola Jokic was sidelined.
Watson averaged 22.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.5 blocked shots and 1.1 steals in 15 games during that stretch as part of his breakout season in his fourth year in the league out of UCLA.
As a 6-foot-8 wing with a 7-foot wingspan who has expanded his offensive game, in addition to being versatile and stout defensively, he fits the archetype of the type of player any team would want.
Including the Lakers.
And the Nuggets, who’ll likely have to go deep into the luxury tax, and possibly over the second apron, to retain Watson unless they shed significant salary elsewhere.
Ousmane Dieng, Bucks, wing
2025-26 stats: 7.6 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 2.4 APG, 19.3 MPG
Dieng, the No. 11 pick in the 2022 draft, struggled to find his footing in the Thunder’s rotation during his 3 ½ seasons in Oklahoma City before being traded multiple times in February, eventually landing with the Bucks.
He got the most consistent playing time of his young career with Milwaukee, averaging 11 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 26.8 minutes in 30 games (20 starts).
Outside of his time with Milwaukee, Dieng hasn’t had many opportunities to showcase the tools that made him a tantalizing prospect: smooth ball-handling that creates space for pull-up jumpers, quickness and length that could make him an impactful defender and instinctual playmaking.
He still remains a developmental player after having played just 166 regular-season games through four seasons.
Ochai Agbaji, Nets, wing
2025-26 stats: 5.1 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 15.7 MPG
Agbaji, who has proven to be a very good on-ball perimeter and solid off-ball defender, followed up his best 3-point shooting season in 2024-25 (39.9%) with his worst in 2025-26 (26.6%).
He’s already been on three teams in four seasons since the Jazz selected him with the No. 14 pick in the 2022 draft.
Agbaji’s value as a player will come down to whether he can find consistency with his outside shot.