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Lakers: Has Kyle Kuzma increased or decreased trade chances in bubble?

By Jason Reed

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - AUGUST 20: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers and Kyle Kuzma #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers and Anthony Davis #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers at the half against the Portland Trail Blazers in Game Two of the Western Conference First Round during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 20, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - AUGUST 20: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers and Kyle Kuzma #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers and Anthony Davis #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers at the half against the Portland Trail Blazers in Game Two of the Western Conference First Round during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 20, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Ashley Landis-Pool/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers
(Photo by Ashley Landis-Pool/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers /

The argument for increased trade odds:

There are several factors that the NBA bubble has revealed that might make it more likely that the Los Angeles Lakers trade Kyle Kuzma. Here are the things working against him.

1. The Los Angeles Lakers know they don’t need a great Kyle Kuzma to win basketball games

While he has the potential to have some big games and potentially be the player that swings a contest, that can be said for literally any player on any team. The fact of the matter is that the Lakers have learned that they do not need Kuzma to be great — and be this “third star” to win basketball games.

Kuzma played really well in the seeding games but that is also because he was given more of a workload as the team was just trying to keep its main stars healthy. Sure, Kuzma played really well, but the games didn’t matter, and more importantly, they lost.

Now, in the playoffs, Kuzma has taken a step back and the team has been just fine. Sure, it is only one series, but we aren’t heading into round two saying “Kyle Kuzma needs to thrive for the Lakers to win this series.”

That just is not the fact of the matter and makes it easier for the team to explore a trade.

2. Alex Caruso has emerged as a far more important “third-star” candidate

Forget the memes. Alex Caruso is a really good basketball player. He is not someone who is going to drop 20 points a night and is never going to look that spectacular in the box score. However, the impact he makes on this team is undeniable.

Caruso played fantastic defense in the Lakers’ first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers and he is the main reason why the Lakers became the first team in the bubble that was actually able to contain the red-hot scoring Blazers.

He also started getting more chances to take the ball up the court and facilitate as well, which is a huge sign of trust by Vogel. Quite frankly, Kuzma has fallen lower on the “third-star” totem pole.

What makes this such a hard decision for the Lakers is that there are reasons to not trade Kuzma as well.

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