Lakers Reportedly No Longer Considering Trade For $90M Star Wing

The Lakers are no longer pursuing a wing who could help offensively.

Apr 3, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) shoots the ball as Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma (33) and Wizards forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. (7) defend in the second half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images / Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers are still looking to improve their roster. The Dorian Finney-Smith trade has helped them defensively, but they still need some help on offense.

Shipping D'Angelo Russell out to Brooklyn has left the Lakers short on playmaking. Without him, they don't have many guys who can create offense for someone else.

LeBron James has been left to those duties a lot, although he was doing that already. He's averaging almost nine assists per game.

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It seems that because of that fact, the have backed off any pursuit of bringing back a former Laker in a trade. That player is forward Kyle Kuzma.

According to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints, the Lakers have backed off trying to bring Kuzma back to LA. Kuzma played for the Lakers for four seasons before being traded to the Wizards as part of the disastrous Russell Westbrook trade.

This makes a lot of sense for the Lakers to do. They don't need another forward who only scores the ball. They need guys who can create plays for others.

Kuzma is not a playmaker. He is averaging just 2.1 assists per game this season for the Wizards.

He hasn't been very durable this season, either. Kuzma has played in just 19 games this year. The last thing the Lakers need is to trade for a guy who is injury-prone or who has injury issues.

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The Lakers are looking for guard play that help them win an NBA Championship. They aren't going to make a move for a guy who barely moves the needle for them.

One of the big issues for L.A is that there aren't many starting-caliber guards available on the trade block. They might be able to get some backups who can contribute more than Shake Milton, who has done next to nothing since arriving in Los Angeles.

There will be a few moves that the Lakers will look to make as the trade deadline gets closer. Once February gets closer, that's when Los Angeles will likely end up deciding to make a move.

The Lakers aren't the only team who will be looking to make a move at the deadline. It might come down to what the price will be for certain guys.

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