On February 6, the teams will be in their final negotiations before no longer being able to recover players until the summer. You will have understood, we are talking about the trade deadline! Only a few weeks left to change the rest of the season, to clean up or, conversely, to strengthen for the Playoffs. It deserves an analysis, and today we are going to talk about the Lakers.
Objective: offer more support to LeBron James and Anthony Davis
With a LeBron James still very productive but no longer young and an Anthony Davis in his prime (31 years old), the Lakers must try to make a run now. The acquisition of Dorian Finney-Smith from Brooklyn is a great find, but it is still far from enough to play the leading roles.
The series of 3 defeats in a row reminds us to what extent the Purple and Gold can be improved. With the upcoming return of Jarred Vanderbilt, LA’s wings are pretty well stocked. Rob Pelinka could go looking for a dynamiter on the backcourt behind Austin Reaves, since no one has really replaced D’Angelo Russell. It is especially at the pivot position that we expect reinforcement from the Lakers. Anthony Davis is incredible in this position but the minutes when he is on the bench are often very complicated for JJ Redick. Jaxson Hayes doesn’t have what it takes for the job while Christian Wood has been injured all season. The ideal would therefore be to find a good understudy for Davis, someone who could also play alongside him with sequences where AD would find position 4.
The main tracks in the racquet: Jonas Valanciunas, Nikola Vucevic, Walker Kessler, Robert Williams?
We know that LA has first picks that can be used for a trade, but Rob Pelinka has always been very careful to avoid overpaying. He will only use his assets if he finds the rare gem.
Announced for a time on the Los Angeles side during the last Free Agency, Jonas Valanciunas is today with the Wizards but his name has come up more than once in the City of Angels in recent months. Gabe Vincent’s contract could be used to bring in the Lithuanian. He has the experience and his contribution to rebounding could do a lot of good, the Lakers being the 28th team in the League in the number of rebounds this season. According to The Athletictwo second rounds of Draft could convince the Wizards to let go of their veteran.
If Valanciunas can help with rebounding, he won’t strengthen the Lakers defense but Walker Kessler could. The Angelinos have been linked to the young talent from Utah for several months but it is rumored that the Jazz are not really selling (source LA Times). Simple way to raise prices or a real desire to build with Kessler, the next few weeks will tell.
Other names have also come out of the hat in recent months like Robert Williams, who is recovering from his injuries in Portland or Nick Richards, clearly available for sale in Charlotte.
According to Evan Sidery of Forbes, the Nikola Vucevic track would also be hot, even if it will be necessary to get rid of competition from the Warriors.
The Lakers and Warriors are viewed as the strongest trade suitors for Nikola Vucevic.
Both teams can match Vucevic’s $20 million salary in talks with the Bulls utilizing various contracts.
Chicago will likely have to end up settling for second-round draft capital on Vucevic. pic.twitter.com/Xc0hnbIT9Y
— Evan Sidery (@esidery)
A reinforcement also expected in the backcourt?
As explained above, the departure of D’Angelo Russell was not really compensated. Shake Milton showed almost nothing in the few minutes we saw him with the Lakers. LA could therefore look for another reinforcement to help Austin Reaves and Max Christie. Jovan Buha, who follows the Lakers for The Athletic, brought out the name Bruce Brown a few days ago. A Swiss army knife profile, factor
The name of Zach LaVine was mentioned but LA would not be looking for a 3rd major player, preferring to rely on complementary role players to surround their two stars. The name of Lonzo Ball was also mentioned but will the Lakers take this bet when the player is just coming back from a long injury? Collin Sexton at Utah is also a name to keep in mind.
A pivot to play with or relay to Anthony Davis, a little more depth on the back lines, the recipe for happiness for the Lakers who always want to play the leading roles but who still have work to do to get back into the competition. We’re going to have to move our butts Rob Pelinka.
Sources : The Athletic / L.A Times / Forbes
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