1. D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle
This is a bit of a precarious situation because, if I were running the Lakers front office, there’s no way I would part with either Julius Randle or D’Angelo Russell this early in their career. However, with the way that the Lakers front office has operated in recent years and even this season, it’s something that you can’t rule out. Subsequently, the two youngsters have the highest trade value on the Lakers roster.
It would be interesting to listen in on calls with the Lakers front office to see what kind of value both Randle and Russell would individually demand on the trade market. However, their real value would come in the form of the Lakers trying to make a big splash to acquire an established star ahead of the deadline. Potential trade partners in that type of deal are going to demand a ton of value and that would almost surely include the likes of former lottery picks like Russell and Randle.
Next: Lakers Draft Prospects: Brandon Ingram
Again, I think it would be incredibly unwise for the Lakers to deal either of their two best young assets on the roster. However, there’s no denying that there would be a market for either player if they were to be made available and that putting them into a package could yield a nice haul in return for the Lakers. Because of that, it’s hard not to put the young duo at the top of the list of assets in LA.