23 the one, 2024, 5:15 pm ET
Which players and what adjustments are the Lakers eyeing ahead of the trade deadline? This is what Los Angeles could do.
It was exactly a year ago, on January 23, 2023, when the Los Angeles Lakers began reformatting their team on the progress.
Anthony Davis (left) and LeBron James, of the Lakers. by Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images
With the NBA trade deadline approaching in less than three weeks and his team stuck with a sub-.500 record after the halfway point of the schedule, Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager, Rob Pelinka traded Kendrick Nunn and three second-round picks to the Washington Wizards to acquire Rui Hachimura.
A flurry of movements occurred as the deadline arrivedand the Lakers, a team that failed to win one of every two games for most of the season, went 18-9 (winning two of every three) to clinch a postseason berth and reach the NBA Finals. Western Conference.
A little more than halfway through this season, the Lakers are once again hovering around .500 (22-22 and No. 9 in the West after winning three of their last four heading into Tuesday’s game against the LA Clippers) and again have to decide If now is the time to remodel this roster. And to what extent.
Lakers coach Darvin Ham said Sunday that Los Angeles “absolutely” has enough to compete for a championship with stars Anthony Davis and LeBron James, as long as his teammates do the best they can around him.
“We know that we have an incredible 1-2 with AD and BronHam said. “And it’s just about guys getting comfortable and being aggressive and not waiting for those two guys to do everything. Do your part, support, but also be a threat. Be deliberate. Be decisive. “This way we can help give them the support these kids need.”
With that in mind, here they are the three possible paths forward for the Lakerswith just 16 days left until the NBA trade deadline of February 8.
Option 1: Stay still
LeBron James celebrates with Anthony Davis during the game between Lakers and Mavericks. Photo: Getty
Ham has good reason to have faith in these Lakers, even with their ups and downs. Their core fueled a long playoff run and remains a threat in the eyes of their opponent.
“With the experience they have, the record doesn’t matter if they’re No. 1 or No. 12. You see them, you appreciate them the same way,” Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said over the weekend. “To me, that team is made for the playoffs.”
And the Lakers have barely had a chance to see what they have so far. The front office wanted a one-month period to fully evaluate this group, team sources told ESPN, but so many injuries early in the season prevented an honest look.
The closest the Lakers came to that assessment was in January, when they went 5-5 and beat some good teams like the Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks, but they also lost to the Memphis Grizzlies and the Brooklyn Nets.
With only 14 positions on the roster filled, Los Angeles could be busy in the acquisition market to address a specific need (a big body or a shooter, for example) and hope the team is healthier in the second half of the season to build continuity and momentum.
This strategy could also pay off in the summerwhen Los Angeles could look to land a big name through a trade.
The Lakers currently only have one future first-round pick available to trade, but starting on NBA draft day, they will have three: 2031, 2029, and 2024 or 2025, depending on whether New Orleans chooses to use the 2024 pick previously received from Los Angeles or postpone it until the next draft.
The Lakers have internally discussed the possibility of packaging three picks, along with players they already have on their books, to look for a true star, like Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers or Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawksteam sources told ESPN.
This summer could also require a bigger center if there is a disappointment in the playoffs. Would James opt out of his contract for 2024-25 and look elsewhere? If so, would the Lakers need to keep that extra draft pick to help reinvent everything in a post-James Los Angeles?
Unlike James’ final season in Cleveland in 2017-18, when the Cavaliers made it clear that any trade involving their projected 2018 first-round lottery pick would depend on James’ commitment to remaining with the franchise, the Lakers did not have preemptively spoken to James’ representatives about the star’s future plans, a source familiar with the situation told ESPN.
Option 2: Shake Up
LeBron James walks to the bench as his head coach, Darvin Ham, looks on. AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File
As Ham acknowledged, the reason this Lakers team is considered formidable is that James and Davis are healthy and have consistently played at a high level.
The same can’t be said for the players around them.
Although he three-star system didn’t fit with Russell Westbrook flanking those twocould there be another top-tier talent worth pursuing?
Chicago Bulls’ Zach LaVine is not considered an option at this timeteam and league sources told ESPN. The reasons are varied: injuries have already cost him 18 games this season, his production has not translated into team success in Chicago, and nearly $90 million guaranteed to him over the next two years, with an additional $49 million player option for 2026-27, there would be too much risk for Los Angeles.
However, Dejounte Murray is still in the conversation. The Hawks’ 27-year-old guard is posting career highs in points (21.1), field goal percentage (47.1%) and 3-point percentage (38.2%), along with 4.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game.
Editorial Selections
2 Related
With Murray making $18.2 million this season, Los Angeles could save luxury tax money by acquiring him in a two-for-one trade. And if the Lakers make a full recovery, a two-for-one deal would be prudent beyond the salary implications. They built their team with depth in mind to endure the 82-game season.
However, as roles become more defined and it becomes clear who is out of the rotation, Several players can be included to equalize the salary or possibly recoup draft capital. That was the case when Los Angeles let go of Thomas Bryant and Patrick Beverley as part of a four-team trade in February 2023 and regained two second-round picks from the Clippers.
But at what price? The Hawks recently asked about Austin Reavesteam and league sources told ESPN, but Los Angeles has no desire to move the popular local talent.
As much as Murray would bring, infusing speed and playmaking ability to a Lakers team that lacks both, would he be enough to part with some combination of D’Angelo Russell, Hachimura, a future first-round pick, Reaves or other young players? The Lakers are also aware that a team’s outlook can change in a matter of weeks. Just look at how changeable his own season has been. It’s entirely possible that other big names will become available as the calendar turns from January to February.
Option 3: Split the difference
Dennis Schroder, when he wore the Lakers jersey. ANP
A player and a role that is missing from the team practically throughout the season is that of substitute point guard. Los Angeles has lamented that its squad lacks speed, consistent paint penetration and second unit organization, team sources told ESPN, sin Gabe Vincent, who has been out due to a left knee injury. Two players who have been discussed internally to fit that spot are Collin Sexton of the Utah Jazz and Tyus Jones of the Wizards, sources told ESPN.
Los Toronto Raptors They have two players on their roster that the Lakers are also interested in, sources said: Dennis Schroder y Bruce Brown. Schroder was Los Angeles’ backup point guard last season before signing with Toronto for the full mid-level exception in the summer.
With the Raptors already completing a trade with the New York Knicks to acquire two ball-dominant players in RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley, Schroder could become expendable. And Brown was the Lakers’ top target with their mid-level exception in the offseason, team sources told ESPNbut Los Angeles was passed over, with the Indiana Pacers offering Brown a two-year, $45 million contract.
The Lakers have also considered trading players who could address specific needs in a possible playoff matchup, like Bulls’ Andre Drummondin anticipation of a postseason rematch with the Denver Nuggets and their great front line of Nikola Jokic and Aaron Gordon, according to sources. Dorian Finney-Smith of the Brooklyn Nets is a big forward that Los Angeles could target in a playoff series with the Clippers to try to neutralize Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Another player with similar size to Finney-Smith and an even more polished offensive game is Miles Bridges of the Charlotte Hornets, but Los Angeles is unlikely to seek a trade for him, sources told ESPN, because he would not retain his rights. Bird, meaning the Lakers would only get Bridges for the remainder of 2023-24 because he would likely find more lucrative offers in free agency than Los Angeles could offer.
Perhaps the biggest question the Lakers will have to answer is What to do with Russell.
He has been phenomenal since returning to the starting lineup, averaging 27.2 points in his last five games. And he has a valuable contract, earning $17.3 million this season with an $18.7 million player option for next season.
However, he is also the same player who was benched in the conference finals last season, and the Lakers managed to get him to waive the implicit no-trade clause which included his contract when he was renewed last summer, something that an organization cannot put pressure on as such, if you have maximum confidence, you will want to keep the player until the deadline.
In a one-for-one deal involving Russell, the Lakers doubt they can find a player who fully complements James and Davis as do Russell’s floor spacing and court awareness on offense, team sources told ESPN.
It will soon become clear if Russell’s improved play of late will help his chances of remaining on the roster, or if this hot streak is simply increasing his trade value.
“I have no control over what the board does, but we can’t worry about that in the locker room”Davis said Sunday. “We focus on what we have here and we try to get wins and we try to win with what we have… Once you start hearing all the rumors and outside noise, it can cause some, I don’t want to say ‘division’ in the locker room, but the players who are in those rumors get into the heads and simply the uncertainty of what is going to happen.
“The best thing you can do is not worry about it and just play, and I think that’s what we’re trying to do right now.”
2024-01-23 22:15:00
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