The NBA trade deadline is getting closer and closer while Los Angeles Lakers fans desperately hope the team makes some kind of trade to improve the roster. After all, despite their record, the team always has a chance with LeBron James and Anthony Davis healthy.
If Los Angeles does not hold up its end of the bargain in building a contender there could be some tension with LeBron in the offseason. There seemed to be a handshake agreement that the Lakers would do anything possible to contend when they signed LeBron to an extension last summer. That has not been the case.
With this possibility in mind, NBA pundits have started to ponder what a LeBron James trade could look like in the offseason. The Athletic’s David Aldridge is the latest to ponder this possibility, coming up with a series of trade packages in his latest piece.
It is really hard to work out what a trade for a 38-year-old James would look like but there is one suggested deal that will certainly get Lakers fans buzzing — and for the wrong reasons.
This Lakers-Bulls LeBron James trade idea would not go over well.
To be fair, Aldridge only gives this trade a possibility score of five out of 10 but even that seems too high. This feels like a trade where none of the parties would actually benefit, including LeBron James.
James would be going to a Bulls team that would not be that better than the current Lakers’ status. He would have an injury-prone second star in Zach LaVine and a lot of the team’s depth would take a hit because of this trade. It would be LeBron, LaVine and Lonzo Ball (who has serious knee issues) and then an assortment of role players.
As for the Lakers, this is a classic trade where they would be paying a dollar to get 75 cents in return. DeRozan is a nice player but he too is getting up there in age and would not replace LeBron. Having Alex Caruso in LA would be nice but you need to have a true contender for that to matter. Patrick Williams is a fine young forward who has never really lived up to expectations.
If the Lakers are actually going to be trading LeBron they need to lean into a trade that gets them more young talent and draft capital. Trying to save face by getting a lesser all-star in return in a not-so-great package is not really going to do much for Los Angeles.
Even with as bad as this season could go, it still seems more likely than not that LeBron James will stay in LA simply because of proximity. The Lakers seem to know that, which is why the team is not showing the urgency that other LeBron-led teams have in the past.
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But if the team is forced to make some kind of trade, it should not be one like this.