The Los Angeles Lakers have seen a recent purple patch in form after going on an incredible 8-2 run after starting the season 2-10. While the high-flying Cleveland Cavaliers slowed the Lakers down last night, the Lakers’ ability to stay in that game against bonafide Eastern contenders without Anthony Davis on the court shows the progress the team has made.
Davis has finally emerged as the leader of the Lakers on-court, with LeBron James finally passing the torch to AD who’s been on one of the most dominant stretches of his career. The seasonal flu made AD check out of the Cavs loss.
Bleacher Report writer Eric Pincus believes this is the time to go all-in and make a trade to improve the roster.
Latest @BleacherReport With Anthony Davis in MVP Form, Lakers Should Go All-In This Trade Season — but what does that look like, given AD is dominating at center, and Russ' playmaking is a real part of that? Can the Lakers win the postseason w/RW?https://t.co/7914MzqBHj
— Eric Pincus (@EricPincus) December 5, 2022
Up until recently, the front office was close to letting this year’s Lakers die on the vine. Rather than ship out Russell Westbrook and one or both of their available future first-round picks (2027 and 2029) to bolster a lost cause, the Lakers seemed resigned to waiting to shop for bigger upgrades around the 2023 draft and free agency. Los Angeles has preserved roughly $30-35 million in cap space for this upcoming summer.
But this recent surge makes a trade more likely than the alternative. Going for it this season is more of an option with Davis playing this well, picks and future cap space be damned. (h,t Bleacher Report)
Pincus also suggested 14 possible teams that the Lakers could make a trade with, whether with Russell Westbrook or with Patrick Beverley and Kendrick Nunn.
What’s The Best Trade The Lakers Can Go After?
In terms of purely player talent, the Lakers might still want to get an All-Star caliber player like Kyrie Irving. However, his off-court issues might deter the Lakers from pursuing him, as they have cooled off on trying to acquire Kyrie after a push in the offseason.
No trade will allow the Lakers to completely protect their cap space for next season, so the best move they could make for a player on a long-term contract is Bojan Bogdanovic in Detroit. Bojan is an awkward fit on the young and tanking Pistons and is expected to be moved after signing a contract extension.
If Bojan is moved, the Lakers could use Westbrook’s contract and get more players like Alec Burks or Saddiq Bey, depending on the pick compensation. With Beverley and Nunn, they can remove the guard logjam on the roster and acquire a shooting wing like Buddy Hield. This would significantly improve their chances this season, given LeBron can play at a high level and AD can continue his current form.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
