The Los Angeles Lakers were hoping to make a statement on Christmas Day by beating the best team in the NBA when they faced the Celtics. Unfortunately, the Lakers couldn’t carry out what they imagined and fell to an 11-point loss.
LeBron James struggled mightily in the game and got candid about where the Lakers stand when it comes to possible title contention, recognizing many steps still need to be taken by the Lakers.
“I think the league’s best teams so far. Minnesota, they’re pretty much healthy. OKC, they’re pretty much healthy besides Giddey. Boston, they’re fully healthy. I don’t think we’re healthy right now. I don’t think we’re where we wanna be to be able to compete against the top teams until we continue on getting better and better… We will be better.”
LeBron James with an update on his knee following the collision with Jaylen Brown: "Definitely a little soar right now." pic.twitter.com/CPfaaDEtOb
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) December 26, 2023
The Lakers did try and build a sound roster in the summer, favoring depth across positions to ensure they could sustain injury issues. They’ve done well on that front by having a record over .500 with all the injuries they’ve suffered., But they’re 2-6 in their last eight games, a stretch where the team has been getting more healthy with every passing game.
They have lost Gabe Vincent again, with the summer signing possibly being out until late February, a devastating blow for the Lakers. They will look at the trade market to see how they can reinforce their franchise without giving up the entirety of their depth. With every passing LeBron comment about the team not being good enough, it seems the Lakers are preparing for a big move behind the scenes.
Which Players Will Get Moved Out Of LA?
If the Lakers go after the players on the market, there are some obvious players that they will be linked to. Zach LaVine, or anyone on the Chicago Bulls, is a likely possibility for the Lakers. But with a small market around LaVine, the Lakers will hope they can either get LaVine for cheap or land somebody else like DeMar DeRozan or Alex Caruso.
The most in-demand Lakers in trade conversation is Austin Reaves, with apparently the Bulls being adamant on being able to land Reaves in a deal for LaVine, DeRozan, and even Caruso. However, LA is not interested in giving up Reaves.
“I think any deal involving the Lakers will have to include Austin Reaves. What I am told is that the Lakers are not interested at all in moving Austin Reaves.”
The Lakers have been strong in their belief they want to retain Reaves, angling for D’Angelo Russell to be moved in this deal.
“For LaVine specifically, I think the Lakers would consider a D’Angelo Russell-centric deal, but I don’t think they’d throw in much more than a combination of salary filler (Rui Hachimura and/or Gabe Vincent), a young prospect (Max Christie or Jalen Hood-Schifino) and a protected pick (2029 or 2030 first rounder).”
Outside of these two, Rui Hachimura and Gabe Vincent would be leading candidates to possibly get moved due to their $10 million or more annual contracts that would allow the Lakers to land notable players.
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