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Dec 9, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson (6) controls the ball against Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) during a NBA basketball game at Staples Center. The Suns defeated the Lakers 119-115. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The latest Lakers rumors take a look at the reality of drawing in a superstar versus honing in on the young core.
Recently, ESPN’s Zach Lowe wrote on the situation the Lakers find themselves in.
Currently on another losing streak, Los Angeles will finish it’s road trip in Florida ahead of a home game on Christmas.
Regardless of how you feel about the team’s season so far, there’s a lot to consider moving forward.
Jordan Clarkson and Lou Williams have been excellent off the bench, while the starting lineup would fare much better if they could avoid injuries.
More specifically, the Lakers are going to need a healthy D’Angelo Russell and Nick Young to even think about making playoff noise.
It’s hard enough to grasp that they’re still in the post-season conversation, but it’s still a possibility.
RIP Lakers Trade Rumors https://t.co/zlVGjKjRXU pic.twitter.com/1fCPyvcXph
— Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen) December 22, 2016
That in mind, the issue that Zach Lowe addresses is whether or not the team should look for a superstar.
Citing the new collective bargaining agreement, Lowe argues that the now easier ability for team’s to re-sign their own big players only haunts free agency moves of the future.
So why not crash the core now?
Per his report:
“In that environment, maybe the Lakers should bust up their young core to trade for a stud now — to at least get one proven A-plus player in the door.”
Since it’s something that’s highly debatable, let’s look at some of the top names the Lakers could try and get more immediately.
DeMarcus Cousins
Nov 10, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) reacts to a play against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half at Golden 1 Center. The Lakers won the game 101-91. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports
If nobody else, Sacramento’s DeMarcus Cousins could provide the most answers for a team still looking for some answers.
This off-season, Los Angeles made the woeful investment of buying into Timofey Mozgov. As most media outlets speculated, it hasn’t been wonderful for the Lakers.
Making sure that they have a presence on the boards is essential to winning in the Western Conference.
Some NBA teams reportedly think there is "traction" on a DeMarcus Cousins trade.https://t.co/GbhtmZonS7 pic.twitter.com/L7O5g1MdLt
— NESN (@NESN) December 12, 2016
Cousins has expressed growing discomfort with the Kings, and it’s hard to blame him.
The reason the Lakers could pounce on the opportunity to acquire Cousins is that he’s not a free agent until after next season. This turns out to be in the team’s favor, as trading players, or possibly picks, for him now could avoid the consequences of the collective bargaining agreement.
Not that he’d necessarily stay in Sacramento, but another team could put down the right price and then the Lakers would find themselves on the losing side of a big name.
Again.
Rudy Gay
Nov 27, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay (8) prepares to shoot the ball as Brooklyn Nets forward Bojan Bogdanovic (44) defends during the first half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports
As the team looks to address their situation with forwards, another key piece to their puzzle could also come from Sacramento.
Rudy Gay is one of the other Kings players that has commented on his time with the team.
While the Lakers may not necessarily provide an immediate winning alternative, Gay could find his best groove with the young core. Los Angeles tried investing in a veteran forward by way of acquiring Luol Deng.
That has not worked out the way they expected it to.
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Deng, like Mozgov, was a contract that the Lakers seemed to do out of desperation. There really wasn’t a good way to figure out the team’s needs other than go to players that they knew for certain they could sway their way.
In a potential pitch to Gay, the difference here may be on how the Lakers deal with his contract situation. He, too, will not be a free agent until after next season.
This gives Los Angeles the upper hand because it allows them to craft a contract deal in the future that could give him more money than other places.
Where the Lakers need to be careful, though, in that same regard is just how much money they give him.
The team must also consider that the new bargaining agreement gives room for raises among their current roster. More specifically, guys like D’Angelo Russell and Jordan Clarkson could want to see more money.
If that’s what it comes to do, the Lakers have to prove they can be master negotiators.
And they haven’t exactly proven that lately.
Paul George
Dec 17, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Paul George (13) dribbles the ball during the second quarter against the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
The Pacers are one of the new-look teams that has been making bigger transitions over the past few seasons. Most notably, the team sent George Hill to Utah and acquired Jeff Teague.
While Indiana is still very much in the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference, there’s a chance they could part ways with Paul George.
George’s name carries the most weight of any of the stars named so far. He would fit rather snug at forward, giving rookie Brandon Ingram more room to go.
Paul George trade rumors starting to circulate once again, but are the Pacers willing to trade him?https://t.co/13k3M37Kw8 pic.twitter.com/OjMcscxlLt
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) December 21, 2016
The way that the Lakers could get a blockbuster deal for someone like George is simple — they’d have to go all in.
You could argue they’d have to do the same with Cousins, but for George they’d probably have to give out draft picks. Not only that, but forward Nick Young would probably have to be in the conversation too.
Not ideal, but possible.
That’s all the Lakers need to hear right now.
Closing Thoughts
Dec 2, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Los Angeles Lakers forward Julius Randle (30) reacts during their game against the Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre. The Raptors beat the Lakers 113-80. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
To answer the original question directly, it may not be in the best interest of the team to have a superstar just yet. Their chemistry among the young core is really in it’s initial phases, and it could do more damage than good to break that up now.
Realistically, having the pieces in place for a major trade isn’t too far from where they should be.
Nick Young has been one of the biggest surprises so far, and that’s tremendous news for his trade value. The reason the team should wait for now, though, is because they haven’t been together long enough while healthy.
We saw a glimpse of what they could do early on, but then the injury bug hit.
Now that those are going away, it’ll be best to evaluate things at the mid-way point of the season.
This may mean that a deal doesn’t happen during the regular season.
Then again, that may not be so bad after all.
