The Los Angeles Lakers are currently having a pathetic NBA season. The 17-time NBA champions are way below contention for the playoffs and the play-in tournament with a record of 2-9 through 11 games this season. Many want the franchise to make some major changes to the roster before it’s too late.
The rumor mill suggests that even Anthony Davis could be involved in trade talks due to his underwhelming performance so far this season. Previously, Russell Westbrook was expected to be the first player to be traded from the team, but he has seemingly saved his spot on the team.
However, as per Howard Beck, an NBA executive, told him that the Lakers are waiting for a specific mystery player before involving Russ in any further trade talks. Beck revealed the Purple and Gold are saving Westbrook and those two future first-round picks for this player.
Who Is This Mysterious Player?
Beck didn’t reveal the name of the player, but the fans are curious about it since it could help the Lakers turn things around this season. Keeping that in mind, Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale recently wrote an article where he tried to guess this specific, mysterious player.
Prior to getting to the actual crux, Favale did mention that, according to him, fans can rule out the names of Draymond Green, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Damian Lillard, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Via Bleacher Report:
Jimmy Butler – Miami has its own, superior megastar package ready to go. The Heat can theoretically dangle three first-round picks, three first-round swaps, Nikola Jovic and additional salary to, you know, chase the same players for whom the Lakers are pining. Still, perhaps Miami is beholden to a market that isn’t boasting another superstar trade target. Jimmy Butler could thus decide to take matters into his own hands. Maybe he’ll want to play for the Lakers. And maybe other teams won’t be tripping over themselves to acquire a 33-year-old with three seasons and an estimated $146.4 million left on his deal (including a $52.4 million player option in 2025-26).
Kevin Durant – Based on the Brooklyn Nets’ reported asking price for Kevin Durant over the summer, targeting him would be a truly pie-in-the-sky move for the Lakers. Then again, maybe not. Durant already requested a trade once. He could feasibly do so again. That invariably torpedoes some of the Nets’ leverage. Yes, Durant has three more guaranteed seasons left on his deal, but that’s not as much of a selling point when we’re talking about a 34-year-old. Make no mistake, other teams will come out of the woodwork even if he doesn’t have them on his list. But the offers will likely be barren of the current or future stars Brooklyn would seek so long as everyone knows KD didn’t want to play for the Nets.
Bradley Beal – Bradley Beal is The One—after Jan. 15, when his trade restriction lifts. Basketball reasons abound for him landing in L.A.. He is the type of primary scorer and secondary playmaker who will have no issue playing off LeBron James and ferrying the offense without him. And while Beal might be first-team All-Shoots-Worse-Than-You-Think-From-Deep, he has a better track record of nailing threes than most others on the Lakers roster. His 35 percent clip on catch-and-shoot triples would also rank third among all of L.A.’s rotation players. What’s more, Beal is juuust old enough, at 29, for the four years and $207.7 million left on his contract (including a $57.1 million player option in 2026-27) to dissuade suitors flush with more goodies. Even if those asset-rich admirers come calling, it doesn’t actually matter.
All three players named by Favale are talented superstars, and the Lakers wouldn’t be able to get them for cheap by any means. So if the team really wants to trade Russ and the future first-round picks, landing a superstar-caliber player is their best shot at winning another ring.
At the end of the day, this is just speculation by the Bleacher Report analyst, and there is no confirmation about whether the Lakers are in talks with either of these players.
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