The Los Angeles Lakers were one of the best teams in the NBA after the trade deadline. Rob Pelinka managed to get LeBron James some actual help and guys who meshed perfectly with their system.
But James isn’t getting any younger, and the Denver Nuggets won’t get much worse in the foreseeable future. So, they need to make moves and reinforce their roster right now.
They have limited cap space to make a big splash in free agency. Nonetheless, they can — and will — use their first-round pick to try and give LeBron and Anthony Davis some more help.
NBA Rumors: Lakers Are Looking To Trade Their First-Round Pick
“The framework of a deal would likely involve [Malik] Beasley, [Mo] Bamba and the No. 17 pick getting exchanged for a starter-level player,” The Athletic’s Jovan Buha reported. “The Lakers could also execute a smaller deal with only one of Beasley or Bamba, plus, potentially, the pick.”
“Names around the league that have been linked to the Lakers in recent weeks include Indiana’s Myles Turner and Buddy Hield, Brooklyn’s Dorian Finney-Smith and Royce O’Neale, Toronto’s Gary Trent Jr. and Washington’s Kristaps Porziņģis, according to multiple league sources not authorized to speak publicly,” Buha concluded.
The Lakers are just one piece away from being a big threat to come out of the Western Conference, and they might as well get it tonight while everyone’s mesmerized by Victor Wembanyama.
