LOS ANGELES — Arthur Kaluma, who stood out for the Lakers during NBA Summer League play this month, has agreed to a one-year, two-way contract to remain with the franchise, a league source told the Southern California News Group on Monday night.
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ESPN was first to report the news of the Lakers coming to terms with Kaluma, avoiding another team swooping in to sign the 24-year-old forward who averaged 18.6 points per game while shooting 60.9% from the field and 50% from 3-point range over five games in Las Vegas.
“People come to summer league for opportunities,” Kaluma said on July 11, following a game against the Dallas Mavericks where he scored a game-high 34 points. “Unfortunately, last year I didn’t have an opportunity because I had to go home with an injury. But just being me and able to come out here and perform at this level. It’s been amazing. All glory to God.”
Kaluma played last year with the South Bay Lakers (now based in Coachella Valley) in the G League, averaging 13.8 ppg on 55.2% shooting in 40 regular-season games. The Lakers first signed the 6-foot-7 wing to an Exhibit-10 deal after he went undrafted following the 2025 NBA Draft. Kaluma, originally from Glendale, Ariz., played college basketball at Creighton, Kansas State and Texas.
When asked about Kaluma’s fit in a potential NBA environment, Lakers summer league coach Ty Abbott stressed Kaluma’s versatility as a positive.
“I think it’s just embracing the versatility that he has, right?” Abbott said on July 11. “It’s not necessarily about playing one position. It’s almost kind of being positionless and being able to fill a role or a void that may be out depending on what the lineups are and what the defense looks like on a night-to-night basis. For him to be able to have shot-making ability, to be able to really dribble the ball, and also take advantage of adverse matchups for other teams, that’s where his strength is. Also, he can defend.”
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To make the signing of Kaluma official, the Lakers will have to waive one of their current three two-way contract players to make room on their roster.
Guard Chris Mañon appears to be the safest of the trio – considering he is entering his second season with the Lakers and his successful July playing for the Lakers over the summer – with guard Peter Suder and forward AK Okereke playing sporadically during the Lakers’ summer exhibitions at the California Classic in San Francisco and the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.
Both Okereke and Suder were signed after both went undrafted last month.
Okereke showed spurts of high-effort playstyle in the post during the summer league, averaging 5.8 points per game in 16.6 minutes over five games. Suder, however, did not play despite being available in the Lakers’ final summer league game on Saturday.
The former Miami (Ohio) guard averaged 5.8 points on 44.4% shooting in 14.4 minutes per game in four summer league contests before being listed as a DNP in the semifinal loss to the eventual champion Golden State Warriors.
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