The Lakers have a unique opportunity, without giving up their two first round picks, to trade with the Bulls for a starting center and point guard who can transform the team into a legitimate championship contender.

With the Bulls committed to a complete teardown and rebuild, Rob Pelinka may finally have found a trade safe enough for him to pull the trigger after a helpless and hapless stretch of 22 months without making a single trade. Paralyzed by the disastrous Russell Westbrook trade, Pelinka has resorted to kicking the can down the road and moving the goalposts each offseason and trade deadline with platitudes like “you can’t buy what’s not for sale.”

The Lakers’ indecisiveness the last two years has been the direct result of ownership and front office not having a vision for the team or a strategic blueprint to guide them when building starting lineups and rotations.
Unlike teams like the Warriors, Suns, and Celtics, the Lakers have no clear plan or precise target to pursue. While other teams go after players whom they covet, the Lakers seem content with what the market might give them.

That’s not enough to save this season or give LeBron James and Anthony Davis the offensive and defensive weapons to win a ring or rookie head coach JJ Redick the chance to be the Lakers’ next Pat Riley or Phil Jackson.
But there is a point guard/center combination the Lakers could trade for that could not cost them a first round pick that has a lower floor but higher ceiling and better fit fit at both ends than Brogdon and Valanciunas.

The point guard/center duo the Los Angeles Lakers should be able to get without giving up a first round pick are the Chicago Bulls’ 3-point shooting, rim protecting center Nikola Vucevic and 3&D point guard Lonzo Ball.

---

LAKERS-BULLS TRADE

While the Lakers need to trade for a point-of-attack guard or wing and a starting or backup shot blocking center, they also must be sure to trade for genuine two-way players who create needed spacing and/or playmaking.

The surprising reality of the Lakers’ situation is their defense has been steadily improving, ranking 7th in the league the last 10 games and 1st the last 4 games, with key defensive players like Vanderbilt soon returning.
Meanwhile, their once-vaunted offense has since been cratering. While currently ranked 17th in offensive rating for the season, the Lakers have fallen to 27th over last 15, 29th over last 10, and 30th over last 2 games.

What the Lakers need is to replace offense-only players with legitimate two-way players who can defend their position as well as space the floor. What they do not want is to trade offense-only for defense-only players.
The Bulls are seeking a first round pick for Vucevic and a second round pick for Ball. Three second round picks plus Russell, Hachimura, Vincent, Hood-Schifino, whom they could re-route, should be enough for Bulls.

L.A. gets a starting center to space the court and protect the rim in Vucevic to let AD to roam free on offense and defense plus a calculated gamble on rehabbing an elite two-way point guard in Ball for zero first round picks.
Significantly, the Lakers trade 4 players for 2 players to open up 2 roster spots plus save over $9 million in annual salaries to be used to fill those two open roster spots with available free agents or their own two-way players.

While Vucevic is not their center of the future and Ball is a calculated risk, landing 2 elite two-way starters for 4 one-way players and 3 second round picks while saving their own 2 first round picks is a big win for the Lakers.

---

WHY NIKOLA VUCEVIC?

…
Nikola Vucevic, 34-years old, 6′ 10′, 260 lbs, 2 yrs @ $20M
– TYR: 21.1 pts, 9.6 reb, 3.2 ast, 0.8 blk, 0.8 stl in 31.7 mpg
– 58.7% on 14.8 FGA, 47.5% on 4.6 3PA, 85.7% on 2.4 FTA pg

If the Lakers want a bruising big to pair with and backup Anthony Davis in the front court, they should target Bulls veteran center Nikola Vucevic, who can not only protect the rim and defend the post but also stretch the floor.

Rumors are the Lakers want to trade for Wizards’ Jonas Valanciunas to pair with and/or backup Anthony Davis in the frontcourt. Trading for Jonas would be a big mistake as Vucevic would be a better fit as Lakers center.
Vucevic and Valanciunas are both just average rim protectors, averaging 0.8 blocks per game. Nikola may be more mobile as he averages 0.8 steals per game to Jonas’ 0.3 although Jonas only plays 19.7 mpg vs Nikola’s 31.7.

Nikola’s 3-point shooting is why the Lakers should pursue him as their next starting center. He is the latest version of Brook Lopez, a veteran traditional defensive center who smartly developed a 3-point shot to boost his game.
Redick wants the Lakers to shoot 35 to 40 3PA per game. Right now, they’re 27th in the NBA at just 33.4 3PA per game. Adding Vucevic’s 4.6 3PA per game would give the Lakers 38 per game, which would make them top-10.

Besides his volume 3-point shooting, Nikola Vucevic is a better fit than Jonas Valanciunas to play the starter-level minutes that would be required to start alongside Anthony Davis while also backing him up when he rests.
Contract wise, the 34 year old Vucevic is more almost twice as expensive. Nikola currently has 2 years left on his contract at $20.0 million per year whereas Jonas has 3 years left on his contract at $9.9 million per year.

While the Lakers top priority is an affordable defensive center who can play with and backup AD, their top trade target should be Chicago Bulls stretch center Nikola Vucevic, who shoots 47.5% on 4.6 3PA per game.

---

WHY LONZO BALL?

…
Lonzo Ball, 27-years old, 6′ 6′, 190lbs, 1yrs @ $21.3M
– TYR: 5.5pts, 3.2 reb, 3.7 ast, 0.6 blk, 1.0 stl in 17.7 mpg
32,2% on 5.4 FGA, 30.0% on 4.5 3PA, 100.0% on 0.6 FTA pg
– CAR: 11.6 pts, 5.6 reb, 6.1 ast, 0.6 blk, 1.5 stl in 31.9 mpg
39.9% on 10.8 FGA, 36.2% on 4.5 3PA, 58.8% on 1.1 FTA pg

While risking a second round pick and matching salary to trade for Lonzo Ball is a calculated gamble, the payoff could be reacquiring a player who once was and could still be the perfect point guard for the L.A. Lakers.

First, let’s be clear any trade for Lonzo Ball would be dependent upon the Lakers’ medical staff viewing his records and examining his knee to make sure he was healthy and he could reasonably remain so in the future.
Trading for 27- year old Ball is a low risk, high reward type of deal. If he can’t stay healthy, all the Lakers lose is a second round pick and what they paid him. If he can stay healthy, they could have an All-Star point guard.

While he’s just played in 11 games this season due to a weird wrist injury, the 27-year old Ball has shown tantalizing glimpses of the promising young point guard he had developed into for the Bulls before his knee injury.
Lonzo missed over two years after arthroscopic surgery on his knee didn’t solve his pain issues and ended up having a cartilage and a brand new meniscus transplant to give him a last chance to resume his NBA career.

His high basketball IQ, elite skills as a playmaker, volume high percentage 3-point shooting, and aggressive point-of-attack perimeter defense make a healthy Lonzo the ideal prototype for the Lakers point guard of the future.
The Bulls are obviously undergoing a complete teardown and rebuild so it makes sense for them to move Lonzo rather than losing him for nothing to free agency. For the Lakers, it’s an opportunity to trade for a former star.

While trading for injury prone Lonzo Ball is a calculated risk that might take a couple of seasons to pay off, it’s the type of low risk, high reward opportunities that can transform second tier teams into champions.

---

POST-TRADE ROSTER

Trading for stretch center Nikola Vucevic and POA point guard Lonzo Ball not only turbocharges the Lakers’ starting lineup’s offense and defense to championship level but also elevates their roster to top-10 in the league.

In addition to the two roster spots opened up by the trade, the Lakers can open up a third roster spot by trading Maxwell Lewis, Jaxson Hayes, and a second round pick to Nets for proven backup center Day’Ron Sharpe.

The Lakers could then use those three open roster spots to sign Markelle Fultz as their backup point guard, trade and convert the two-way contracts of Quincy Olivari and Christian Koloko to standard NBA contracts.

That would give the Lakers a deep, talented, and balanced starting with Lonzo Ball at point, Austin Reaves at shooting guard, LeBron James at small forward, Anthony Davis at power forward, and Nikola Vucevic at center.
The beauty of the Lakers new starting lineup is that all five starters are potentially two-way players who can both space the court with their 3-point shooting and efficiently or adequately defend their individual positions.

The new starting lineup is backed up by an elite bench led by point guard Markelle Fultz, shooting guard Max Christie, small forward Dalton Knecht, power forward Jarred Vanderbilt, and backup center Day’Ron Sharpe.
Besides a 10-man rotation, the Lakers’ player development group includes point guard Quincy Olivari, two guard Bronny James, small forward Cam Reddish, power forward Chris Wood, and center Christian Koloko.

A blockbuster trade for Nikola Vucevic and Lonzo Ball for three second round picks could be the best possible move the Los Angeles Lakers could make to transform themselves into legitimate championship contenders.

The Lakers have recently inquired on Malcolm Brogdon in trade talks with the Wizards.

Los Angeles is a team to watch potentially acquiring both Brogdon and Jonas Valanciunas from Washington. pic.twitter.com/FtbvWJLBGS

— Evan Sidery (@esidery) December 21, 2024