The Los Angeles Lakers made waves during the 2024 period of free agency by not doing much at all. The organization re-signed Max Christie and LeBron James, and was briefly linked to a number of intriguing names, but ultimately decided to bring back a virtually identical roster.
Considering the team lost in the first round of the playoffs in 2023-24, that decision inevitably struck fans and pundits alike as a questionable way to enable first-year head coach JJ Redick to be successful.
Despite the unexpected progress made under Redick, most agree that the Lakers are a trade away from truly contending. There are holes in the roster, as well as pending contract decisions, that must be addressed if the team is going to take the next step.
According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, fans may need to wait until at least January for the Lakers to begin addressing those concerns by executing a trade.
"Based on the intel that has come out of the Lakers' side, intel around the organization, intel just from third parties, it seems to be that this is going to be a situation that drags into January, if not closer to that February 6 trade deadline. The Lakers might have some incentive to make a trade sooner than later, but that doesn't necessarily mean the team that they are trading with has that same incentive. A lot of these teams want to see 30, 35, 40 games with their groups to decide which players are keepers, which players are expendable, and how do we value these guys?"
It may not be the type of report Lakers fans were hoping for, but having a clearer idea of when a trade could transpire offers some degree of clarity on what the immediate future may hold.
Lakers unlikely to make a trade before January, if not the trade deadline
With Anthony Davis and LeBron James on the roster, there's an inevitable sense of urgency among fans to see Los Angeles build a team that can win at the highest level. Davis and James have already delivered a championship and a second Conference Finals appearance, and there's reason to believe they can build upon past success.
James will turn 40 in December, however, meaning the window of opportunity for the Lakers to make noticeable improvements is rapidly closing.
James has thus far defied Father Time at every turn, but even he will ultimately lose the war that no challenger has ever won. It's certainly within the realm of possibility that his unprecedented longevity will persist beyond 2024-25, but there's no responsible way for the organization to bank on that transpiring.
Even if it does, failing to execute a trade that would improve the team's championship odds wouldn't just be a shortcoming in 2024-25—it would mark a second consecutive season during which the team remained dormant at a time of need.
There were admittedly signs of promise in 2023-24, including the fact that Los Angeles went 27-14 across the final 41 games of the regular season. For that matter, the Lakers are 7-4 to start the 2024-25 campaign and look the part of a postseason-caliber team.
For as encouraging as that may be, the simple fact that the Lakers lost in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs and haven't used anything but the Draft to improve the roster remains concerning.
Perhaps it truly was as simple as making a change at head coach and thus unearthing a new level of the team's potential. It's equally possible that there are players on the roster whose step forward in 2024-25 will be enough to raise the Lakers' overall ceiling
Based on Buha's report, it appears as though the earliest deadline for Los Angeles' players to prove that theory right will be January.