The Los Angeles Lakers could trade Kyle Kuzma
Numerous teams are interested in Kyle Kuzma. That sentiment goes against how many Lakers fans feel about the former Utah product.
During the 2020 playoffs, some Purple and Gold devotees started a petition on Change.org that said Kyle Kuzma shouldn’t get a ring even if the Los Angeles Lakers win the title.
Kyle Kuzma didn’t light it up on offense during the postseason, but he finally started doing the little things that lead to championships. Kuz played solid perimeter defense, and at times he flashed potential lockdown quality defense.
He also rebounded better, and he stayed within the flow of the offense. GM’s also like his confidence. Kyle Kuzma showed throughout the playoffs, make or miss, he’s never scared of the moment—a quality rare among young players.
It’s easy to envision Kyle Kuzma turning into an excellent two-way force in the future, so yeah, teams are interested in him and his rookie scale contract.
Next year, Danny Green’s due $15 million, but he’s probably close to something near the minimum. Green has been a 3-and-D player throughout his career in the most real sense. On offense, he can’t handle the ball, he can’t get to the rack, and he has no mid-range game, but Green was always a reliable 3-point threat. His head coaches typically tasked him with guarding the opposing squad’s best perimeter weapon on the less glamorous side of the ball.
The problem is this past season, Green’s 3-point shot looked rushed and broken, and he shot a miserable 34 percent off mostly open 3-point attempts throughout the playoffs. On defense, the 33-year-old lost a step. During the postseason, he could no longer be trusted to slow down the top offensive players he was asked to guard.
The Lakers would love to dump Danny Green and his exorbitant contract on another team, and Rob Pelinka and company would probably be willing to include Kyle Kuzma in a deal that takes Green off the books. There’s one catch, though.
The Lakers would have to take a player back in a trade that involves Danny Green and Kyle Kuzma, and there aren’t a lot of players whose salaries match up with Green and Kuzma’s that make sense for both sides.
Victor Oladipo would work, but why would the Pacers trade the former All-Star for so little? Sure, Oladipo’s struggled since coming back from injury, but he never really had a chance to find his rhythm, and he should round back into form next season.
Garry Harris would also work monetarily, but he’s due $40 million over the next two years, and he averaged a very pedestrian 10 PPG while shooting 33 percent from deep last season. The Lakers would certainly rather hang on to Kyle Kuzma than trade for Harris and his ridiculously priced contract.
Eric Gordon’s another intriguing option, and with the upheaval that’s sure to come with Rockets GM Daryl Morey stepping down, Houston might be willing to trade their shooting guard to try to clear their books. But Gordon just signed a four-year $75 million extension last season, and his salary would eat into the Lakers cap space moving forward.
We have to tentatively sell the Kyle Kuzma rumors.
The Lakers will almost certainly trade Kyle Kuzma if he helps facilitate a deal involving Danny Green. There aren’t many trades involving Green and Kuzma that make sense.