Going into the offseason, Rob Pelinka spoke about the Los Angeles Lakers’ ability to use three first-round draft picks in order to improve the roster.
The offseason came and went though, and they used one of those picks to draft Dalton Knecht while the rest of the roster remains unchanged. The Lakers will go into the 2024-25 season with two tradeable first-rounders in 2029 and 2031.
At his press conference ahead of the start of training camp, Pelinka was again asked about his willingness, or lack thereof, to trade those picks.
“I think the philosophy that JJ and I are aligned on is we want to build sustainable Lakers excellence,” Pelinka said. “I think when you talk about moves, you can make a move that backfires. I think every GM has made a trade that they say ‘Ah, that one wasn’t ideal.’ But every lense that we look through has to lead to sustainable Laker excellence. So the direct answer to your question is yes, we would do a trade with both picks if that will lead to sustainable Lakers excellence. We would also use one pick to make a marginal upgrade if we felt like it was the right thing to do. We looked long and hard and did a lot of work at seeing if there were ways to increase the overall roster talent this offseason and the right move didn’t present itself. It’s not an excuse to say we have a different system that is more of a limiting system for trades and moves and so there’s just less of a supply for opportunities. But we will continue to study and scour the marketplace and if the right move presents itself that leads to long-term Lakers excellence and improving our team this season, we’ll pull the trigger.”
Pelinka and JJ Redick have both been preaching the importance of player development and building through the draft given the challenges brought on by the NBA’s new CBA.
While that sounds great, there’s no denying that the clock is ticking on the LeBron James and Anthony Davis era with the former turning 40 later this year.
The Lakers may only have one or two more chances to win a title with their two superstars, so it will be interesting to see if Pelinka shows some urgency between now and the trade deadline to give them the help they need to win another title.
Rob Pelinka discusses if Lakers can compete for championship
Rob Pelinka was also bluntly asked if he feels the Lakers can contend for a championship, and he was honest in admitting he is not yet sure even though he believes in their group.
“I think that’s really a question that I think we’ll have a better sense on after 30 games,” Pelinka said. “But we believe in this group and the 15 guys that play the games are gonna control the wins and losses with their effort, with how hard we play, with the pride we play with, with how organized and detail-oriented we are. I can tell you, we can’t guarantee wins or losses, but we can guarantee that that’s going on with these guys. So the confidence and belief level is high. But the work is never done.
“So we’ll continue to look for ways if we can to upgrade the roster. That’s part of our jobs and something we always have an open eye to doing. But if we have good health and good fortune, I really like our chances.”
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