As the Feb. 8 trade deadline draws near, all eyes will be on the Los Angeles Lakers to see if they can make roster upgrades to get back into championship contention.
The Lakers were hoping that their offseason moves would elevate them to that status although halfway through the regular season, they have proven to be a .500 team at 21-21.
A number of factors such as injuries have played a role in that, but it still has become clear that this team likely needs to make a move between now and the deadline.
Whether that’s a big move, a small one or something in between, Rob Pelinka has a lot of potential paths for improving the Lakers. The two biggest names the Lakers have been linked to are Zach LaVine and Dejounte Murray, although there certainly are other options out there beyond just those two.
According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Lakers also reportedly have interest in Jerami Grant of the Portland Trail Blazers, Terry Rozier of the Charlotte Hornets, Gary Trent Jr. of the Toronto Raptors and Dorian Finney-Smith and Royce O’Neale of the Brooklyn Nets:
Other names that have come up in talks with team and league personnel over the past two weeks include Portland’s Jerami Grant, Charlotte’s Terry Rozier, Toronto’s Gary Trent Jr. and Brooklyn’s Dorian Finney-Smith and Royce O’Neale. Each player fills at least one of the Lakers’ three needs.
These are all players that the Lakers have been linked to in the past and would fill needs on the team.
Acquiring Grant would represent the biggest move of this bunch as he signed a five-year, $160 million contract with Portland this past offseason. That seems like it could be too expensive for L.A.’s liking, although there’s no doubting that he would be a solid fit as a wing alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
All of the other players on this list would be smaller moves that likely wouldn’t take as many assets to acquire as Grant or Murray.
Rozier and Trent would add a scoring and 3-point punch to the Lakers’ backcourt while Finney-Smith and O’Neale would both add 3-and-D ability on the wing.
As far as what the Lakers would give up in any of these trades, recent reports indicate that they do not want to part with Austin Reaves, which makes sense given his contract and production. With that being the case, the Lakers have D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, Max Christie, Jalen Hood-Schifino and Maxwell Lewis to offer along with their 2029 first-round pick, pick swaps and second rounders.
Lakers also interested in Tyus Jones and Collin Sexton
With the trade deadline nearing, the Lakers have naturally been linked to a lot of different players that could become available. Among them are Tyus Jones of the Washington Wizards and Collin Sexton of the Utah Jazz, two players that would improve their backcourt.
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