The Los Angeles Lakers did a great job bringing back last year’s core while also improving on it in NBA free agency. If all goes as planned, the Lakers are undoubtedly going to be in the mix to win the team’s 18th championship in franchise history.
As fans saw last season, this front office is not afraid to make adjustments at midseason if needed and that will be the case this season as well. This might be the last chance to win a title with LeBron James so the Lake Show is going to go all out.
As a result, there are certain players on the Lakers roster who inevitably won’t make it the entire season in LA. Here are the favorites to be moved at some point throughout the year.
Lakers who will not last the entire season in LA:
D’Angelo Russell
The Los Angeles Lakers all but confirmed that D’Angelo Russell will be on the trade block with the contract the team signed him to. There was speculation that the Lakers would move on from Russell after a horrendous Western Conference Finals but ultimately it is better to get something for Russell rather than let him walk for free.
Is there a world in which Russell plays really well in the first half and convinces the Lakers that the team needs to keep him? Sure. But even if that happens it will increase his trade value and probably make it more likely that he gets moved.
Russell simply is not the kind of guy a team should want getting big minutes in a playoff series. There is a reason why he has bounced around from team to team throughout his career. If the Lakers can package him for something bigger then it is a no-brainer to do so.