After one of the most disappointing seasons in recent years, the Los Angeles Lakers will probably be a team to watch this offseason. They know they have to maximize LeBron James‘ championship window and this might be one of their last chances to do so.
Rob Pelinka has a lot of work to do. The team not only has to find a new head coach after Frank Vogel‘s firing, but it also needs to make a decision about Russell Westbrook, whose first season in LA left a lot to be desired.
The Lakers finished 11th in the West, not even making the play-in tournament. Consequently, changes are expected to be made, despite they are not in the best position to make trades.
Lakers could eye Heat’s Duncan Robinson as one of 3 possible trade targets
While the Lakers may not have much to offer in return for a superstar, they do have a couple of players who could have trade value. Those are Talen Horton-Tucker and Kendrick Nunn.
According to Sean Deveney of heavy.com, people around the league believe the pair could attract interest in the league, and an NBA executive told him that Duncan Robinson of the Miami Heat could be a possible target.
“Who could the Lakers target with the pair? It might be tough to get anything done without giving up a future first-rounder, and the Lakers are short in that respect—they can’t trade a pick until 2027, and are reluctant to give up picks that far out. But it won’t be impossible. The exec threw out, hypothetically, Duncan Robinson of the Heat, Malik Beasley of the Timberwolves and Christian Wood of the Rockets,” Deveney wrote.
Robinson is one of the many players who saw a lot of progress in his game under Erik Spoelstra, but he’s been lacking playing time as of late. Beasley is a more experienced player entering his seventh NBA season, while Wood has been doing well in Houston but enters the final year of his contract. They do not look like the saviors the Lakers need, but the team will have to make changes for next season regardless.