Lakers News: LA Front Office Has Talked About Trading For All-Star Point Guard
The magical 2023 playoff run for your Los Angeles Lakers has come to an end now that the Denver Nuggets took care of business in four games. As much as it hurts, we now must shift our focus to what roster moves must be made this summer?
D'Angelo Russell is perhaps the most uncertain free agent for the purple and gold here and the energy has certainly shifted compared to two months ago, when he had Crypto.Com Arena in the palm of his hands as LA turned their season around.
But if the Lakers opt to let DLo walk, who averaged 13 points on 31% from three in the postseason, what other options will they have?
The obvious and popular choice has been Kyrie Irving. His midseason trade to the Dallas Mavericks did not work out at all and he's been spotted multiple times attending Lakers' home games in the past couple of weeks.
However, it appears another star guard is in the running and that would be none other than former number five pick Trae Young.
"For what it’s worth, Kyrie Irving and Trae Young, two All-Star-level point guards, were both sitting courtside in Los Angeles for the second time this postseason. Young, like James and Davis, is a Klutch client. The Lakers have had internal discussions about what a hypothetical trade offer for Young could look like this summer, according to multiple league sources not authorized to speak publicly."
(Via The Athletic)
This would be super interesting considering that Young is one of the premier playmakers and shooters at the guard position but also comes with a pretty hefty price tag.
He is set to make over $40 million in each of the next three seasons and with Anthony Davis and LeBron James already on huge contracts, LA would find themselves in a similar cap situation like when they had Russell Westbrook.
Young is coming off of a 2022 campaign that saw him average 26 points, ten assists, and pushing the Boston Celtics to six games in the first round of the NBA playoffs. His value is clear but his size and defensive liabilities would be tough for a Lakers team that just barely got some real depth around them.
The 24-year-old sniper could be deadly in pick and roll's with Anthony Davis but Laker fans may have to say goodbye to Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura if a trade does indeed go through. The only real way I could see LA going for it is if either of those guys take a pay cut, which is not very likely.
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