The Los Angeles Lakers understand that the roster, as currently constructed will not contend for an NBA championship. As such, they have been working hard to try and improve the roster.
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Recently, Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez has been mentioned as being on the trade block, and the Lakers are interested in the big man according to Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski:
Brooklyn’s most serious talks for Brook Lopez are in the West, sources tell Yahoo. Lakers interested, but likely short assets for deal.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) January 16, 2015
The last part of that statement is the most important as the Lakers seem unlikely to acquire the big man despite the desire to do so. Unfortunately for the Lakers, this has been an ongoing issue. They have been mentioned as potential destinations for other players, but they lack draft picks and young talent that would most interest teams getting rid of players.
The one asset the team does possess is expiring contracts. Jordan Hill, Jeremy Lin and Steve Nash are all big money expiring that would intrigue some teams, but the Lakers need more if they plan on swinging a deal for an impact player.
Lopez has been a very good center when he is able to stay on the floor. Foot issues have hampered him since he entered the league, but with only one more season, he may be worth the risk for a Lakers team in need of major help. This season, Lopez is averaging 14.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks on over 50 percent from the field in 29 games for the Nets.
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