The Los Angeles Lakers are in an encouraging position after franchise centerpiece LeBron James agreed on an extension that will see him play in the purple and gold until he’s 40 years old. While it looks like LeBron can defy the laws of aging, it doesn’t look like that is enough to convince the Lakers to use all their future picks in a trade splash to add depth to the team.
Everyone knows that the Lakers have two trade options they can possibly explore. The first is trading Russell Westbrook and both their picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Kyrie Irving and another role player to match salaries. The second option is the Lakers talking to the Indiana Pacers for Buddy Hield and Myles Turner.
LA has been discussing a trade for Kyrie with the Nets for a while, with the team recently agreeing to send 2 picks to Brooklyn. However, the Nets are still holding off on trading Irving as the situation with Kevin Durant remains unsolved. This makes the Pacers trade a viable option for LA, but Adrian Wojnarowski has revealed that the Lakers are not going to trade both their picks to Indy for Hield and Turner.
https://twitter.com/pickuphoop/status/1560056281360224261
“The Lakers are having on-and-off talks with Indiana about Buddy Hield and Myles Turner, but they’ve not been willing to give up 2 future picks in that deal. Russell Westbrook will also have to be involved. The Lakers are going to continue trying to see if they can add some size and shooting before the season or at the start of the season.”
Even though Hield and Turner bring important skills to the table in LA, they are both on expiring contracts and shouldn’t have to come at the cost of 2 first-round picks. The Pacers could trade the players individually to desperate teams later in the season and get 2 picks in 2 trades for both the players.
The Lakers would do well with the shooting ability of both players, with Hield getting the best looks of his career as an open 3-point shooter by virtue of playing with LeBron James. Turner can be the center next to AD and gives LA a versatile lineup, but it does look like they would rather trade those picks for Kyrie than depth in Hield and Turner.
