The Lakers are 26-17 and sitting 5th in the West, which sounds calm until you watch how loud their last week has been. They just took a 112-104 loss to the Clippers that was basically a reminder that the margin is thin, and the flaws get exposed fast when the opponent has real shot-making and size.
Even with that, the engine is ridiculous. Luka Doncic is at 33.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 8.7 assists, LeBron James is still at 22.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 6.9 assists, and Austin Reaves was playing like a legit co-star at 26.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 6.3 assists before the calf injury.
That’s why the rumor mill matters right now. This is the part of the season where contenders stop talking in hypotheticals and start making calls, and the Lakers are exactly the kind of team that will get linked to half the league.
So let’s cut through the noise and predict what actually happens, the type of move they prioritize, what they’re willing to pay, and the one move they’ll flirt with but ultimately won’t pull the trigger on.
The Lakers Get A Defensive Guard To Help Out
Keon Ellis is the kind of deadline name that pops because it’s realistic, not because it’s sexy. The Lakers have been linked to him in the “checked in” category, with reporting tying the idea to a simple framework:
Dalton Knecht plus a future second-rounder. That tracks with how the Lakers have to operate right now, they can’t keep swinging at unicorn wings if the market is dry, so you go shopping for one skill you can actually bank on in April: point-of-attack defense.
Lakers Receive: Keon Ellis
Kings Receive: Dalton Knecht, 2032 second-round pick
Ellis is averaging 5.3 points and shooting 38.4% from the field, so no, nobody’s pretending he’s a scorer. But he’s also giving you real defensive value and 1.1 steals per game, and that’s the profile. If the Lakers are serious about building a playoff rotation, they need a guard who can pick up full court, fight over screens, and make life miserable for quick guards without needing the ball to feel involved. Ellis is exactly that archetype.
And yes, this also connects to the Knecht reality. Knecht is at 4.8 points per game this season, and the league still sees him more as a developmental shooter than an immediate playoff piece. Plus, he already knows what “almost traded” feels like from the Hornets saga last season, when he was part of the Mark Williams deal that got rescinded after a failed physical. That matters because front offices remember who has already been put on the table.
The fit is clean. Ellis doesn’t need touches, he just needs minutes in the right matchups. Next to Luka and LeBron, he’s basically a specialist you can deploy when the game turns into a hunting contest. If the Lakers want a move that actually changes a playoff possession without costing a first-rounder, this is the type of bet they can make.
A New Wing That Brings Two-Way Impact
De’Andre Hunter is the opposite of the Ellis idea. This one is a real rotation swing, a bigger contract, a bigger player, and a bigger bet that the Lakers can stabilize the wing defense without sacrificing their offense. There’s been noise that Klutch is pushing the Lakers toward Hunter, which is exactly how these deadline convos usually start, not with a team statement, but with agency gravity and “league sources” chatter.
Lakers Receive: De’Andre Hunter
Cavaliers Receive: Maxi Kleber, Gabe Vincent, 2030 first-round pick
Hunter is at about 13.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists this season, and he’s playing a legit starter workload. The sell is simple: he’s a real wing body who can hold up defensively and still punish you for ignoring him. When the Lakers go small, they need wings who don’t turn into targets. When they go big, they need wings who don’t kill spacing. Hunter checks both boxes more often than not.
The money is the whole chessboard here. Hunter is making $23.3 million this season, so the Lakers’ cleanest path is stacking their mid-sized deals. Vincent is at $11.5 million and Kleber is at $11 million, which gets you right into the range without the Lakers touching their top-end core. That’s why those two names keep showing up in rumors and proposed frameworks, they’re the matching-salary levers that let the Lakers shop without nuking the roster.
Now the Cavaliers angle. With them wobbling and deciding they’d rather turn Hunter into flexibility plus a first, you can talk yourself into it. But it’s also not guaranteed they even want out of Hunter, although Hunter is reportedly hoping to leave. Still, if the Lakers are going to spend a real pick, Hunter is the kind of two-way wing who actually makes the spend feel justified.
Rui Hachimura Stays Put With The Team
Rui Hachimura’s name keeps hovering around deadline chatter because his contract is big enough to anchor a deal, $18.2 million this season, and because teams always call on wings with size who can shoot. There have been reports that the Lakers are more open than ever to including him in talks, which is exactly what happens when you’re trying to upgrade without many picks, you have to at least listen.
But I don’t think he’s going anywhere. Rui is at 12.1 points per game and shooting 42.9% from three this season, and that kind of spacing from a bigger forward is not something the Lakers should be eager to dump unless the return is a clear win. Even with the calf situation and the minutes restriction slowing his rhythm, the Lakers clearly view him as a big piece, not a throw-in.
And then there’s the simple “moment” factor. He already stole a game with a buzzer-beating winner against the Raptors, the exact type of shot that makes coaches trust you in late-game lineups. If the Lakers are trying to survive playoff matchups, a wing who can space, finish, and occasionally swing a game is not the guy you ship out for pennies.
So yes, Rui will get mentioned. The Lakers will take calls. But unless the deal is a true needle-mover, it makes more sense for them to keep Rui, keep the size, and use other contracts to do their shopping.
Not Getting A Super Target At The Deadline
This is the part Lakers fans don’t want to hear. The dream is a monster 3-and-D wing, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III, that whole tier, plus the recurring “what about Andrew Wiggins?” chatter. The problem is the market doesn’t care about dreams, it cares about leverage, and the Lakers don’t have enough leverage to force a seller to blink.
Start with the Pelicans. The reporting has been pretty blunt that Herb Jones and Trey Murphy III aren’t available, along with other core names, even with the Pelicans struggling. That alone shuts down the cleanest fantasy path. And it’s not like these are fringe guys. Herb is still a defensive tone-setter at 9.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.7 steals this season. Murphy is having a full breakout at 22.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 3.6 assists while hitting 38.1% from three, and he’s on a $25 million salary this season. Even if they were available, you’re talking about a price tag the Lakers probably can’t meet.
Then there’s Wiggins. The Lakers have been linked to him again, but the practical issue is money and cost. Wiggins is making $28.2 million, and he’s producing 15.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.8 assists this season. That’s a real player, but that’s also a real price, and it’s hard to justify gutting the few movable contracts and picks you have for a move that might not even cleanly fix the defense.
The clearest reporting vibe around the Lakers has been that they’re waiting for a “real needle-mover,” but also not rushing into a desperation deal. Translation: the superstar wing tier is mostly locked, and the Lakers are more likely to end up with a realistic upgrade than a headline-stealer.\
Final Thoughts
A lot of Lakers fans want fireworks because deadline week feels like a movie trailer. I don’t think that’s what this is. I think it’s more like roster surgery: one smaller move that shores up a specific weakness, and one medium swing if the price finally drops.
If the Lakers do anything, it’s going to look closer to “get a defender who survives the playoffs” than “land the biggest name on the board.” And honestly, that’s probably the smarter way to play it.
