Los Angeles Lakers: Reasons for and against pursuing Wayne Ellington
By Jason Reed
The Los Angeles Lakers are naturally going to be buyers at the NBA Trade Deadline if the right opportunity exists. Rob Pelinka knows that this team should look to improve at every turn it can and that includes the trade deadline.
The Lakers’ hands are tied in the sense that they cannot make any big moves, but they can make moves for some lesser names and contract figures. One of the possible options could be Detroit’s Wayne Ellington.
Ellington is in the last year of his contract and on the last-place Detroit Pistons he is naturally someone who the team is going to look to sell to a contender — the Lakers potentially being one of them.
While it may seem like a great fit to some, there are pros and cons of potentially pursuing Ellington via trade that have to be weighed. With that in mind, here are the reasons for and against the Los Angeles Lakers pursuing Wayne Ellington via trade.
Reason for: The Los Angeles Lakers can easily trade for his contract
Half of the trade battle in the NBA is simply having contracts that can be matched in order to make the trade financially possible. That is why we won’t see the Lakers in the market for someone such as JJ Redick — the salary is simply too high.
That is not a problem whatsoever with Ellington. Ellington is making just $2.5 million this season, a figure that could easily be obtainable by the Lakers. The Lakers can start a trade around Alfonzo McKinnie and Quinn Cook.
Those two are obviously not great assets for Detroit, but the Lakers could then build that up with future second-round picks and perhaps talented youth in Devontae Cacok. It would be similar to when the team flipped Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk to Detroit for half a season of Reggie Bullock. Same idea, except perhaps with more names involved to make it work.