3. Perhaps a three-team trade is the key to these Lakers rumors
The one other way the team could acquire Lonzo Ball is if the team helped the New Orleans Pelicans acquire a bigger point guard for Ball. Ball and a first-round pick might not be enough to get someone like Kyle Lowry.
However, if Lowry wants to go down and play with Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram the Lakers could interject to take Ball and help send assets in return to Toronto. If Toronto loves Ball as a player then this doesn’t happen, they just take Ball. However, this trade nets them more players and draft capital.
The Toronto Raptors get three players for the price of one in this trade as well as two more picks in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft. This is an ideal return for Kyle Lowry, as Toronto should be undergoing a soft rebuild, nothing huge.
The Raptors do not have to blow it up as they do still have talent on the team. However, they do need a soft rebuild and transition. Schroder gives them a starting-caliber point guard that can give them quality scoring, Kuzma and Alexander-Walker are both young and projectable but can produce now and the two picks (plus their own) will instantly be in the rotation.
This helps as the Pelicans do not have to trade more players to Toronto. In this deal, we assumed Kyle Lowry is taking on a salary of $35 million. For a Ball swap to work, the Raptors would have to pay him around $35 million, which just is not practical. Instead, they take on $41 million in Schroder, Kuzma and Alexander-Walker.
Kyle Lowry might be an intriguing piece for Rob Pelinka to try and trade for as well, but if the team really wants Lonzo Ball, then they could try and take advantage of Lowry in this capacity.