Aloha,
While the league remains on pause waiting for the KD and Mitchell situation to be resolved the Lakers find themselves frozen in place as well. With the Pacers trade talks dead and Kyrie tied to the outcome of the KD drama what are other moves the Lakers could consider? By the way with COVID roaring back in California one wonders if the Lakers would even consider Kyrie at this point. You don’t trade for a guy to sit out most of a season.
A couple of little blurbs caught my attention, one from Shams that the Lakers have chatted with the Jazz. While there hasn’t been a lot of details, the speculation is that the trade would center around Conley and Bogdanovic.
First I would view this as a LeBron window trade. It would be a two year deal in my mind and while it may not make us a title favorite, it could give the team at least a punchers chance.
Conley is the perfect point guard for a LeBron team. He can play off the ball, and shoot the 3. He was over 40% the last couple of years. While he is no longer is the bull dog on defense he was with the Griz, he’s still pretty good and much better then either Kyrie or Russ.
Bogdanovic is a lifetime .392 3 point shooter. He is 6’ 8” so he would add some size to our forward rotation. While he is hardly a defensive stopper, he has a high BB I.Q and is decent in a team defensive scheme.
Bogdanovic is in the last year of his contract, while Conley has 2 years left with the last year only partially guaranteed. So there isn’t any long term salary baggage to worry about. While this isn’t the sexiest deal and by no means a long term solution, it might be the best we can do to rid ourselves of Russ.
I’ve yet to see a single scenario that makes us a favorite to even get outta the 2nd round. I think that’s why Rob is so willing to roll the dice on Kyrie….could catch fire but could also burn down the whole damn building. Gotta take that risk I guess..lol
There’s an argument the Lakers should have a puncher’s chance to win #18 next season if:
(1) We’re able to swap Russ for a few legitimate rotation players.
(2) We can finish a top 6 seed in the West
(3) We go into the playoffs with a healthy, rested, and motivated LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Lots of ifs. Here’s my ranking of possible trades:
1. Kyrie and Harris
2. Turner and Hield
3. Conley and Bogdanovic
4. Randle and Fournier
Were we able to get Kyrie, we could even end up as favorites. I think we would be favorites for 6th seed if we got Turner and Hield. We’re a play-in team if we take ther other trades. We miss the playoffs again and pray we get the chance to pick Victor Wembanyama if we keep Russ.
I think if LeBron and Davis are healthy and dominant, we have a chance. If not, Pfff. The rest doesn’t matter.