2. The Los Angeles Lakers get an excellent three and D player in Robert Covington
The recipe for success when surrounding LeBron James with talent is getting players who can play defense and can shoot the three-point shot. The Lakers definitely had the defensive portion of the recipe down but have not surrounded him with consistent three-point shooters.
When the team is fully healthy that has not been as big of a problem with him and Anthony Davis simply being an impossible matchup for other teams to defend. But with Davis hurt, it was clear LeBron could not carry the team the same way he normally would, partly because of his age and partly because the pieces simply were not complementary.
If the team can add someone that fits the defensive identity of this team while also being a great three-point shooter that would be huge. For that reason, Robert Covington may be the dream acquisition.
The trade:
The Portland Trail Blazers are in an interesting situation with Damian Lillard this offseason and are going to be desperate to make moves. Some of that desperation might be for draft picks, as the team infamously overpaid for Robert Covington last offseason by trading two picks.
The Blazers get one of those picks back in a better position by way of the Lakers’ 22nd overall pick while also adding three years of a younger player in Kyle Kuzma. It is not the prettiest of trade packages for Portland, honestly, but when you look at the landscape of the league the Lakers are the one team that can make a move.
Most other contenders already have their draft picks tied up somewhere else and while that is true with the Lakers and New Orleans, the team at least has its pick this year and a young player in Kuzma that is established and can be flipped for more assets later.
Plus, Covington was not a great fit on Portland anyway. He was supposed to be this defensive stopped and three-point specialist and he was not used properly. The “Dame time” offensive scheme mixed with terrible team defense just set Covington up for failure.
Maybe this is a move that does not happen until the deadline and if that is the case the Lakers would be trading whoever they pick at 22, but for one year of Covington, this is probably a fair value.
The concern would be another team coming in over the top.