Lakers rumors: Reasons for and against trading for Collin Sexton
By Jason Reed
Reason against: Collin Sexton is not a good defensive player
If there is one thing that the Los Angeles Lakers have really embraced the last two seasons it is the defensive side of the basketball. Frank Vogel is one of the better defensive head coaches in the league and having a versatile defensive anchor like Anthony Davis certainly makes it easier to field a team with elite defense.
Sexton does not fit that mold whatsoever. He has been a well-below-average defender in his three years in the league and is not showing any signs of getting better. He would have easily been the worst defender on the Lakers last season.
That can come back to bite a team. How often do we see one-way players get exposed when the game slows down in the NBA Playoffs? You can work around it but it can also create a significant matchup problem.
Sexton posted a career-best -1.9 Defensive Box Plus/Minus last season, which is really bad. His career average of -2.5 DPBM is even worse. His solid offense is simply negated by his poor defense, as he posted a 0.0 BPM last season.
If the Los Angeles Lakers traded for Sexton then they would be showing some confidence that he could figure it out in LA and that is not completely out of question. He has not necessarily been on the best team with the best coaching and with better defenders around him and something to play for, Sexton could theoretically at least make his defense serviceable.