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Could Lakers Pull Off Blockbuster Trade For Superstar Point Guard?

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The time may have come for Rob Pelinka not only to make a blockbuster trade to save the Lakers’ season but also to commit to a future built around a talented young superstar point guard who can unleash Anthony Davis.

Transitioning from LeBron James has been the monster lurking over every roster decision Rob Pelinka and the Lakers consider that involves trading one of two tradable first round picks. Use picks now or save them for later. With LeBron James finally slowing down a little and looking as if next season just could be his last, the real decision the Lakers may be struggling with right now might not be whether to go big but rather just how big to go.

Frankly, now could be the ideal time for the Lakers to change direction and trade for a young superstar point guard to replace LeBron and complement superstar Anthony Davis and rookie 3-point sharpshooter Dalton Knecht.
There are rumblings around the league that De’Aaron Fox, Trae Young, and LaMelo Ball, three dynamic young superstar point guards who’d be great fits for Los Angeles could become available before the next trade deadline.

The problem the Lakers and ay NBA team faces when a superstar is available is how to win a trade versus loaded teams like Brooklyn, OKC, Utah, and San Antonio, who control 62 first round picks next 7 years.
The Lakers obviously need an edge. Fortunately for them, two of the three young superstar point guards available this trade deadline — Trae Young and De’Aaron Fox — are now clients of Rich Paul and Klutch Sports Group.

Competition for these star point guards, if available, will be fierce but the Klutch connection could ultimately be the difference maker, just as it was when the Lakers and Klutch forced the Pelicans to trade Davis to them.
There have been rumors the Lakers and Klutch might try to repeat the same trade strategy that resulted in the Pelicans trading AD to the Lakers in order to force Sacramento or Atlanta to trade Fox or Young to Los Angeles.

Ideally, any Lakers trade for a young superstar point guard should be a 3-for-1 trade where the Lakers send out Russell, Hachimura, and either Hood-Schifino or Vincent to match salaries and open up 2 roster spots.
The Lakers would still have enough matching salaries plus first round swaps and second round picks to hopefully trade for an affordable starting center like Robert Williams or Walker Kessler to pair with Anthony Davis.

While Pelinka has obviously been a little hesitant and gun-shy of making a major trade after the Westbrook fiasco, the pressure to do something to save the season to give rookie coach Redick a better roster is mounting.
The Lakers need another younger superstar to give LeBron James and Anthony Davis another chance at winning a championship. The timing could be ideal for the Lakers to consider a mega move to replace James.

Trading for a young superstar point guard to replace LeBron James is theoretically more important than winning the championship for any single season as it could impact the franchise’s success for a decade.
Pelinka knows his next big trade could easily be his last as the Lakers’ general manager, which is why he may finally be forced into a blockbuster trade to save the season and land the replacement for LeBron James.

Here are three proposed Lakers trades for a young superstar point guard along with the current player stats for each of the three trade targets and the projected starting lineup, rotation, and depth chart after the trade.

1. TRADE FOR DE’AARON FOX

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De’AAron Fox, 26-Years Old, 6′ 3″, 185 lbs, 2-years @ $35.6M
26.8 pts, 5.1 reb, 5.8ast, 0.2 blk, 1.9 stl in 37.7 mpg
48.5% on 20.3 FGA, 33.8% on 6.3 3PA, 80.3% on 6.2 FTA pg

The grand prize young superstar point guard target for the Los Angeles Lakers would be Sacramento King point guard De’Aaron Fox, who recently fired his old agent and signed with Rich Paul of the Klutch Sports Group.

A lightning quick speedster, De’Aaron Fox would be the perfect young superstar point guard replacement for the Lakers to pair with Anthony Davis to replace LeBron James’ scoring and playmaking going forward.
While the Lakers’ efforts to force Sacramento to trade Fox are a long shot, the Kings under Mike Brown are floundering for direction and the lure of 2 or 3 post-LeBron James Lakers first round draft picks could be appealing.

After trading for Fox, the Lakers would still have enough available matching salary in Gabe Vincent and Cam Reddish plus a first round pick swap or multiple second round picks to trade for Robert Williams.

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2. TRADE FOR TRAE YOUNG

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Trae Young, 26-Years Old, 6′ 1″, 164 lbs, 3-Years @ $46.0M
20.7 pts, 3.9 reb, 12.0 ast, 0.1 blk, 1.2 stl in 35.7 mpg
38.4% on 16.5 FGA, 30.6% on 8.3 3PA, 89.1% on 6.2 FTA pg

There’s a strong argument the best young superstar point guard the Los Angeles Lakers could pair with Anthony Davis would be the Atlanta Hawks’ Trae Young, the best playmaker and 3-point shooter of the 3 candidates.

An elite playmaker and shooter, Trae Young could simply be the best young superstar point guard replacement for the Lakers to pair with Anthony Davis to replace LeBron James’ scoring and playmaking going forward.
While the Lakers’ efforts to force Atlanta to trade Young are a long shot, the Hawks have a loaded and talented young roster for direction and the lure of 2 or 3 post-LeBron James Lakers first round draft picks could be appealing.

After trading for Young, the Lakers would still have enough available matching salary in Max Christie and Jalen Hood-Schifino plus a first round pick swap or multiple second round picks to trade for Robert Williams.

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3. TRADE FOR LAMELO BALL

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LaMelo Ball, 23-Years Old, 6′ 7″, 180 lbs, 5-Years @ $48.8M
31.1 pts, 5.4 reb, 6.9 ast, 0.2 blk, 1.1 stl in 34.1 mpg
43.0% on 24.9 FGA, 35.6% on 13.1 3PA, 84.8% on 5.8 FTA pg

There’s no question LaMelo Ball at 6′ 7″ and 23-years old is one of the NBA’s best young point guards who just signed a 5-year monster extension with the hopeless, hapless, perennial bottom feeding Charlotte Hornets.

A unique talent and unicorn, LaMelo Ball joining the Lakers and following his brother Lonzo sounds like a crazy, wild pipe-dream come true but the younger Ball brother has a kind of basketball magic that belongs in L.A.
Without Klutch, the only advantage the Lakers might have in trading for LaMelo might be his personal desire to succeed where his brother failed or the lure of 2 or 3 post-LeBron James Los Angeles Lakers first round picks.

After trading for Ball, the Lakers would still have enough available matching salary in Gabe Vincent and Cam Reddish plus a first round pick swap or multiple second round picks to trade for Robert Williams.

5 Reasons Why Lakers Would Be Smart To Fire Darvin Ham Now

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With the team stuck in 10th place and only 18 games left in the season, the Los Angeles Lakers would be smart to fire second-year head coach Darvin Ham right now rather than waiting until this summer to make the change.

While the Lakers will probably wait until the offseason to make a head coaching change, there are compelling reasons why they would be better off making the change right now rather than waiting until this summer.
Firing Ham right now could save the Lakers’ season and their relationship with LeBron James plus give them a head start on securing a new coach, deciding whom to keep, and resetting the franchise’s goals and priorities.

Everybody knew the Lakers were essentially sacrificing this season for the future when they decided not to make any moves at the deadline, leaving coach Ham with a flawed roster lacking critical frontcourt size and depth.
But Ham’s inability to handle the simple basic head coach responsibilities like building smart lineups, making the right substitutions, calling critical timeouts, and managing game strategies and tactics has been glaring.

Frankly, it seems inevitable that Darvin Ham will be fired this summer. The front office has reportedly had to intervene several times to resolve team rotation and playing time issues between Ham and disgruntled players.
The Lakers need to do whatever they can to save this season. As long as LeBron James and Anthony Davis are healthy and thriving, the reality is the Lakers will always have a puncher’s chance to win the NBA championship.

Here are five reasons why the Lakers should fire Darvin Ham right now rather than waiting until next summer, when their attention should be on building their next championship team, not searching for a new coach.

1. Only Opportunity To Save Season

While changing coaches at this point would be dramatic, the only way the Los Angeles Lakers can save this season is by firing Darvin Ham right now and replacing him with Phil Handy as the team’s Interim Head Coach.

There’s no question that Darvin Ham has lost this team, that LeBron James and Anthony Davis no longer are listening to or respect him. Waiting until this summer to replace him will only create more confusion and disarray.
After Tuesday night’s collapse against the Kings, the Lakers now have only a remote chance of making the top-6 in the West and will end up as one of four teams forced to win the Play-In Tournament to make the playoffs.

Throwing away a season where LeBron James and Anthony Davis are both healthy and playing like superstars would be pure basketball malfeasance. The Lakers should fire Ham now and give Phil Handy a chance to shine.
There’s a better chance Phil Handy could get the team to play better and win the head coaching job for next season than Darvin Ham could survive the rest of the season and be confirmed as head coach next summer.

The Lakers have always believed that they have a chance to beat any team if they have a healthy and thriving LeBron James and Anthony Davis heading into the playoffs. They showed last year that the Play-In couldn’t stop them.
What the Lakers need right now is for the team to fire Darvin Ham and promote Phil Handy to Interim Head Coach. That’s the only front office move they can make at this point to possibly save the 2023–24 season.

It’s obvious right now this Lakers team is not going to make the playoffs with Darvin Ham as head coach. The only way the Lakers can save this season is to fire Darvin Ham and promote Phil Handy to Interim Coach.

2. Jump Start Finding New Coach

The last thing the Lakers want to be doing next summer is searching for a new head coach when their focus should be on trading for a third superstar to support LeBron and AD and replace James when he decides to retire.

Firing Darvin Ham now would jump start the Lakers search to find his replacement. Besides giving Phil Handy a chance to show what he could do as the head coach, firing Ham opens door for L.A. to start searching.
Unfortunately, the list of available head coach candidates is largely filled with the usual retread list of out-of-work head coaches that includes Mark Jackson, Mike Budenholzer, Kenny Atkinson, Terry Stotts, and Sam Cassell.

Other head coach candidates whom the Lakers might have interest include L.A. assistant coaches Phil Handy and Chris Jent as well as highly respected young coaches like the Kings’ Jordi Fernandez or the Bucks’ Charles Lee.
Phil Handy and Chris Jent both have strong relationships with LeBron James and either of them deserves to be given a trial opportunity to see if they could possibly fit as the long-term head coach of the Lakers.

The Lakers have never opted for what could be considered an open search for a head coach conducted by an elite professional executive search firm. Instead, Jeanie and Rob have always trusted their own private networks.
If the Lakers are likely to fire Darvin Ham this summer, doing it now could give them a valuable opportunity to see if Handy or Jent is up to the job and, if they’re not, they then get a head start on finding Jam’s replacement.

Should the Lakers no longer believe Darvin Ham is their coach of the future, firing him right now would be a smart move that would give them more time to to experiment and decide who will be their next coach.

3. Reevaluate Current Roster Needs

Another compelling reason why the Lakers need to fire Darvin Ham right now is he is simply in the way of finding out what they have in the current roster before they can finally decide what to do via trades this summer.

While the current scuttlebut is that the Lakers are going to try and pull off a blockbuster trade for a third max-salary superstar this summer, with Trae Young as the favored target, much still depends on the rest of the season.
Because of a plague of injuries and inept player evaluation and poor lineup construction by the coaching staff, the Lakers still are not sure what they have in D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, and the rest of their young roster.

Even if the Lakers’ chances of winning a championship are remote, the rest of the season is critical to determining whom the team wants to keep and whom they no longer want. Darvin may not be the best coach to do that.
Ham has essentially bungled the lineups and rotations to the point where everybody believes the front office was eventually forced to intervene and order him to start Russell and Hachimura instead of Prince and Reddish.

Replacing Ham with either Handy or Jent would be a simple transition that could not only help the team win more games but also give the front office and coaching staff a fresh new look at each of the players under contract.
Before the Lakers trade away assets like Russell, Reaves, Hachimura, Christie, and Vanderbilt for a max salary $45 million per year third star, their front office clearly needs to be find out what they actually have.

Over the remaining 18 games, the Lakers need to find out just how valuable are D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, Jarred Vanderbilt, Rui Hachimura and whether they would be smarter to keep them or move them this summer.

4. Rebuild Relationship With LeBron

The single biggest reason why the Lakers should fire Darvin Ham now rather this summer is to jumpstart rebuilding the team’s relationship with superstar LeBron James, whose disdain for Ham has become public.

The front office declining to improve this roster at the trade deadline was the first insult to LeBron James. Forcing LeBron James to finish out this season playing for a coach whom he doesn’t like could be their second.
Everybody knows LeBron wants to stay with the Lakers but if this team misses the playoffs, James may ultimately decide to leave Los Angeles as a free agent rather than sign a new multiple year deal to retire as a Laker.

The reports of how LeBron ignores Ham during time outs and calls his own plays have been seen by everyone and Darvin’s bias for or against specific players and rotations was bearable when winning but not when losing.
Keeping Darvin Ham as head coach for the rest of the season may be the easy decision but the risk is LeBron James could become very weary of losing with the bad lineups and watching poor substitutions being made.

There is a negative dynamic at play with Darvin Ham and LeBron. Not only is not firing Ham now wasting one of few years left in LeBron James’ career as a Laker but it’s risking his ultimate personal loyalty to the franchise.
While the Lakers may not want to admit Darvin Ham was the wrong pick, the current discord between the coach, the players, and the fans is only going to get uglier. The Lakers and LeBron James do not need this.

The Lakers should fire Ham right now to prevent further damage to their relationship with LeBron James. Right now, it looks like James and Lakers are on course for new contract this summer. Don’t allow Ham to ruin that.

5. Reset Franchise Goals & Priorities

The final and most important reason the Lakers should fire Darvin Ham now rather than this summer is to have more time and opportunities to reset their franchise goals and priorities heading into a crucial offseason.

The other contributing factor that may be adversely affecting the morale and quality and consistency of the team’s play is the Lakers’ public plan to pull off a blockbuster trade this summer for a third max-salary superstar.
Make no mistake, to trade for a third superstar making $45 million per year, the Lakers would have to trade every player on their roster except for LeBron James and Anthony Davis and rely on minimum salary players

Unless Russell opts into his player option or agrees to a sign-and-trade, the only tradable contracts the Lakers will have this summer to match Trae Young’s $43 million would be Reaves, Hachimura, Vincent, and Vanderbilt.
Trading those four players for a third superstar like Trae Young would strip the Lakers of their depth and diversity and make them reliant on minimum salary players to fill out their starting lineup and regular season rotation.

There’s a strong argument that using their 3 first round picks and 4 pick swaps for a new starting stretch center and aggressive point-of-attack defender would be a smarter than going all-in again on a third superstar. There’s compelling evidence D’Angelo Russell has shown the Lakers he is the third star they need to complement LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Lakers greatest priority should be to bring back D’Angelo Russell.

Firing Darvin Ham right now would give the Lakers valuable time and options to reset their franchise goals and priorities and make a smarter decision on how best to upgrade their roster to championship level.

Why Lakers Need Dejounte Murray Now More Than Trae Young Later

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The Lakers #1 priority should be to trade for Dejounte Murray right now even if it costs them multiple picks and swaps and a young star like Austin Reaves rather than saving picks to trade for Trae Young next summer.

Frankly, talk of the Lakers not trading their one available first round pick before the February 8 deadline so they could offer three first round picks for a superstar next summer is probably just posturing by Los Angeles.
The Lakers do not want to tie up their salary cap and roster flexibility by trading for a third superstar making over $40 million per year who can’t play defense and leaves the team unable to build a championship roster.

What the Lakers want is to find a potential superstar guard who’s stuck in a situation where he cannot be the best version of himself, a player who has the upside to be a superstar but is still on an affordable, tradable contract.
Specifically, the Los Angeles Lakers want to trade for an impact player who can immediately make them a dramatically better team, like Tyrese Haliburton did for the Pacers or O.G. Anunoby for the New York Knicks.

Watching Dejounte Murray dominate and lead the Hawks to an impressive blowout win, there’s no longer any question whether Dejounte Murray is the right fit for what the Lakers need to become legitimate contenders.

The Lakers appear now to be laser focused on trading for Hawks’ Dejounte Murray, whom they believe can return to being an all-star and all defensive NBA player once freed from playing next to ball dominant Trae Young.

Dejounte Murray’s unique blend of speed and athleticism, shooting and playmaking, offense and defense, and age and contract are a better fit to play with LeBron James and Anthony Davis than superstar Trae Young.
At 27-years old and capable of playing at a star level at both ends of the court, Murray is much better fit on the Lakers than Young, who would be L.A.’s logical target next summer if they ultimately pass on Dejounte.

The Lakers envision Dejounte Murray as the elite point-of-attack defender they need to anchor their perimeter defense, a bigger and better version of Dennis Schroder who also can be an All-Star scorer and offensive player.
Murray dissected the Lakers defense as he dominated his Lakers’ audition, using his great speed and athleticism to beat his defender to spots where he could easily elevate and sink wide-open 10-foot jumpers to close out game.

The Lakers have committed to a roster building philosophy that focuses on acquiring and developing talented young players who have not lived up to their promise but could thrive if given the right opportunity with L.A.

Dejounte Murray is the right candidate for the Lakers to invest in as their two-way point guard of the future. Still only 27, Dejounte has the raw speed and athleticism and elite shooting and playmaking to be a future star.

Right now, the Lakers are trying to get as much leverage as possible to avoid giving up Austin Reaves, which is why all the talk about saving the pick until next summer and possible trades with the Nets for 3&D wings.
The Lakers also know they must make a major move and that the time to make that move is now because this could be the Lakers and LeBron James’ final chance to win another NBA championship before the King retires.

Waiting until next summer is too late. If the Lakers don’t trade the pick and land Dejounte Murray, they seriously risk LeBron James deciding to decline his player option for next season and becoming an unrestricted free agent.
LeBron James walking away is the nuclear outcome Pelinka must avoid at all costs. While LeBron may no longer be able to dominate an entire series like he once could, he’s still a top-10 NBA player and the franchise face.

The Los Angeles Lakers have no choice but to go all-in on a blockbuster trade for the Hawks’ Dejounte Murray to become their point guard of the future, even if it costs multiple picks and swaps and Austin Reaves.

Could Lakers Swap Westbrook & Picks for All-Star Guard at Trade Deadline?

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Just when it looked like AD’s injury had doomed the Lakers to another losing season, a series of unrelated events suddenly opened the door for a possible deadline trade of Westbrook and picks for a superstar guard.

While we’re still a month and half away from the February 9 trade deadline, it’s now looking more and more like the Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls, Toronto Raptors, and Washington Wizards are going to become sellers.
That’s exactly what Rob Pelinka and the Los Angeles Lakers front office have been hoping would happen as the trade deadline got closer and teams had to make the hard decisions whether to become buyers or sellers.

The prospect of Trae Young, Zach LaVine, or Fred VanVleet suddenly becoming available right when the Lakers desperately need a superstar guard alongside James and Davis seems almost too good to be true.
But maybe the Basketball Gods just wanted to see whether the Hawks, Bulls, Raptors, and Wizards truly valued the Lakers’ two unprotected post-LeBron James first round draft picks as guaranteed top-5 picks.

That Trae Young and Zach LaVine are also clients of Rich Paul and the Klutch Sports Group like LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Kendrick Nunn, Troy Brown, Jr., and Juan Toscano-Anderson clearly favors the Lakers.
There’s no question Rich Paul would like to see Young or LaVine join up with LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the Lakers and we’re going to see a vigorous campaign to convince Atlanta and Chicago to trade them.

Whether Young, LaVine, or VanVleet end up getting traded to the Lakers will depend on their teams’ decision to be buyers or sellers and how much they value the Lakers two unprotected post-LeBron James draft picks.

1. Trae Young and Bogdan Bogdanovic Trade

In Atlanta, the 16–16 and 8th seed Hawks continue to struggle in the East. Trae Young could soon be on the trading block as his shooting has been off and he’s had conflicts with John Collins and head coach Nate McMillan.

If the Hawks continue to struggle, they’ll have a tough decision to make. Pairing Trae Young and Dejounte Murray has not solved their need for defense and offensive balance. Their best move may be to trade Young.

The trade would be great for the Lakers as Young and Bogdanovic could slide right into the starting lineup alongside LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Lonnie Walker IV. Trade might give Lakers best starting five in NBA.

2. Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic Trade

In Chicago, the 13–18 Bulls are considering blowing it up as conflicts have arisen between Zach Lavine and DeMar DeRozan. Word is Klutch Sports is pushing hard to get LaVine out of Chicago and to the Los Angeles Lakers.

While the Lakers and Bulls discussed trading for DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic, the better fit for the Lakers is obviously LaVine and Vucevic. If not for Zach’ injury history, this would be Lakers’ top trade.

For the Lakers, Zach LaVine would address their long-term needs for a superstar guard to replace LeBron James while Nikola Vucevic would address their short-term needs for a starting center until AD returns.

3. Fred VanVleet, O.G. Anunoby, Otto Porter, Jr. Trade

In Toronto, the Raptors are trying to decide whether now is the right time to blow the team up and rebuild around Scottie Barnes. Gary Trent, Jr. could be on the market as well as Fred VanVleet and O.G. Anunoby.

The 14–18 Raptors are currently 10th in the East and are 3–7 in their last 10. If they fall any further back, it’s likely to force them into becoming sellers. Getting two post-LeBron first round picks from Lakers would be a bonus.

For Lakers, VanVleet and Anunoby would move right into the starting lineups with Porter Jr. providing depth off the bench. Trade gives Lakers size, shooting, and defense. Season saving trade if it happens.

4. Kyle Kuzma and Kristaps Porzingis Trade

Finally, in Washington, D.C., the Wizards are trying to figure out what do with Kyle Kuzma and Kristaps Porzingis, both of whom will become unrestricted free agents next summer. Again, the Lakers are lurking.

The 12–20 Wizards are stuck in a tough place. They just signed Bradley Beal to a 5-year max contract that has a no-trade clause. They need to be tanking, which means trading off pieces that help them win games.

This is a great trade for the Lakers. They not only get Kuzma back but get a starting center in Kristaps Porzingis who will fill in for Anthony Davis now and give L.A. great long-term front court size, shooting, and defense.