The Los Angeles Lakers may have won three of their last four games, but they still hold a dismal 22-22 record and sit in ninth place in the Western Conference. With each inexcusable loss, such as their 130-112 defeat against the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, the pressure only grows for them to do something about their situation.
They’re rumored to be attempting to land Dejounte Murray from the Atlanta Hawks, and, reportedly, they’re looking for a third team to find a taker for D’Angelo Russell. But L.A. has numerous other trade targets as well.
Many may argue none of its rumored trade targets would move the needle much. But the team has also reportedly talked internally about making a much bigger move once this season concludes (h/t Lakers Daily).
Via ESPN:
“The Lakers currently have only one future first-round pick available to trade, but starting on the day of the NBA draft, they’ll have three: 2031, 2029 and either 2024 or 2025, depending on whether New Orleans chooses to use the 2024 pick it previously received from L.A. or defers it to the next draft,” Dave McMenamin wrote.
“The Lakers have discussed internally the possibility of packaging three picks, along with players they already have on their books, to pursue a bona fide star, such as Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers or Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks, team sources told ESPN.”
Fans will likely be disappointed if the Lakers don’t make any moves before the Feb. 8 trade deadline and instead wait until this summer to improve their roster. LeBron James has a player option for next season, and he could always decide to opt out of his contract and leave the Lakers this summer if he is unhappy about their direction.
Mitchell has been rumored to want out of Cleveland. He can opt out in the summer of 2025 and become a free agent, and if Cleveland wants to trade him beforehand and get some value for him, he could be the type of big fish the Lakers could badly want.
However, most feel Mitchell, who is originally from the tri-state (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut) area, wants to go to the New York Knicks.
