The most talked about basketball player in Los Angeles right now isn't even someone on the Los Angeles Lakers — it is Zach LaVine. The Lakers firmly took the lead as the most sensible team to trade for LaVine when he hit the trade block, which has caused plenty of speculation.
Trading for LaVine would bring a litany of issues to Los Angeles and the Lakers seem to somewhat understand that. The team is reportedly more interested in trading for Alex Caruso and DeMar DeRozan, which is a good sign that Rob Pelinka might not go all-in on someone who doesn't really translate to winning basketball (LaVine).
In fact, the Lake Show may go an entirely different direction altogether. The team has several assets to trade and there are multiple names that will probably get dealt at the deadline who make more sense than LaVine.
Malcolm Brogdon is a better Lakers trade target than Zach LaVine
Malcolm Brogdon was shipped to Portland in the Jrue Holiday trade which created a new defensive force in Boston. Brogdon could have been re-routed again when that happened but the Blazers ultimately kept him aboard, likely to serve as a veteran presence to the young guards on the roster.
The hope for Portland is that Brogdon could increase his value some and convince a contending team to trade for him at the deadline. After all, there is no real reason for Portland to hang onto him as an expiring contract.
While he missed a small amount of time, Brogdon has played well on the Blazers this season and certainly would be a welcomed addition in Los Angeles if the Lakers were to make a trade.
There are two ways to go about this. The Lakers could essentially trade D'Angelo Russell straight up with either a young asset (like Jalen Hood-Schifino) or multiple second-round picks. Or, the team could try to offload Gabe Vincent's multi-year deal, pairing him with Taurean Prince, Hood-Schifino, and a protected first-round pick/pick swap.