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3 players the Lakers could realistically trade in 2023-24

By Jason Reed

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 05: D'Angelo Russell #1 of the Los Angeles Lakers dribbles away from Terance Mann #14 of the LA Clippers as Wenyen Gabriel #35 follows during the first half at Crypto.com Arena on April 05, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 05: D'Angelo Russell #1 of the Los Angeles Lakers dribbles away from Terance Mann #14 of the LA Clippers as Wenyen Gabriel #35 follows during the first half at Crypto.com Arena on April 05, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
(Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /

The Lakers could realistically trade Rui Hachimura

The idea of the Lakers trading Rui Hachimura is absolutely ludicrous right now. Hachimura is coming off of a fantastic postseason in which he was the most reliable bench scorer on the team. That is what earned Hachimura a three-year, $51 million contract with LA.

In a perfect world, Hachimura will continue to develop in LA to the point where the Lakers physically cannot trade him. At that point, Hachimura would become one of the best bargains in the entire sport for Los Angeles.

But as every NBA fan should know, a perfect world is not real and it isn’t a guarantee that Hachimura is going to succeed. After all, Hachimura had an up-and-down career before joining the Lakers and if he never got the NBA Playoffs spotlight his salary would be half of what it currently is.

The Lakers likely won’t ever trade Hachimura by himself but his contract figure is an important one if the team wants to make a bigger trade. Hachimura and Russell together combine to match up with some significant contracts. If the front office is getting pressure to get a third star then Hachimura will undoubtedly be shopped.

The hope is that the front office learned from the Russell Westbrook trade and won’t trade quality depth for a superstar that does not even fit well on the team.

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