The Los Angeles Lakers are 20-21 at the exact midway point of their schedule, and just about everyone feels they need some outside help in order to turn things around.
They have most of the core that took them to last season’s Western Conference Finals, but they seriously lack 3-point shooting and can also use some speed and burst at the point guard position.
Right now, their biggest trade targets seem to be the Atlanta Hawks’ Dejounte Murray, who would give them a speedy scoring guard who can also facilitate and defend. But the price for him could be steep.
On Wednesday, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that L.A. is also looking at possibly targeting the Washington Wizards’ Tyus Jones and Collin Sexton of the Utah Jazz.
Other players the Lakers have on their radar ahead of the trade deadline:
• Tyus Jones
• Collin Sexton(via @mcten | @espn) pic.twitter.com/Ko2ZobIGkU
— Witness King James (@WITNESSKJ) January 18, 2024
Jones may not be the attractive trade piece Lakers fans are hoping for, but he is a very solid lead guard who is averaging 12.8 points and 5.6 assists a game this season. He’s also shooting a very robust 52.0% from the field and 42.0% from 3-point range.
Sexton, meanwhile, is more of a scoring threat, although he may not be a true facilitator. He’s putting up 16.9 points and 3.9 assists in just 23.5 minutes a game while shooting 48.9% overall and 37.1% from downtown this season.
