There have been plenty of rumors surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers leading up to the NBA Trade Deadline. These are five trades the team should consider.
The Los Angeles Lakers are at a crossroads between win now mode and saving assets to preserve future success. Making the incorrect move at the deadline could send them down the wrong path, similar to the one they went down six or so years ago.
The Dwight Howard and Steve Nash trades in 2012, at the time, appeared to set the Lakers up for championships at the end of Kobe Bryant‘s career, but it ended up mortgaging the Lakers future for a bunch of bad seasons in a row when those moves failed to pan out.
Those trades were offseason moves, but they can show how making the wrong blockbuster move can haunt a franchise even as strong as the Lakers.
However, waiting to make a deal for a superstar, like Anthony Davis requesting a trade to the purple and gold, has yielded frustrating results more recently.
In 2016, Paul George requested a trade to only the Lakers. They decided to wait until free agency, and now he is in Oklahoma City long term. Last year, Kawhi Leonard wanted to be in Los Angeles and now it looks like he will either stay in Toronto or end up with the Clippers in free agency because the Lakers failed to make San Antonio an offer they couldn’t refuse.
At 27-25 sitting at ninth in the Western Conference, it is time to give the godfather offer to the Pelicans for Davis and maximize LeBron’s championship window. The need for another superstar is especially necessary because James has shown signs of aging for the first time in his career this season. In addition, the younger highly touted players have not developed as quickly as some believers anticipated.
The last time the Lakers made a blockbuster deal that turned them into a championship contender at the trade deadline, they nabbed Pau Gasol and it worked out for both franchises. The Lakers ended up with two titles and the Grizzlies ended up with another Gasol that helped make them a perennial playoff team up until a couple of seasons ago. The Pelicans should take notes from them and make a deal with the Lakers that could work well for both sides, but if they don’t the Lakers will have to look for a plan B.
When healthy, this roster was good enough for fourth in the Western Conference, so they may not need to make a move, and will probably still make the playoffs if they stay pat. Yet, there are a few different ways the Lakers could go at this point to shake up the roster and make it into a team better built to win right now and would benefit both parties involved.
These are the five moves the Lakers should consider going into next Thursday’s trade deadline going from a minor trade all the way to a blockbuster one that all NBA circles are buzzing about.