Could Lakers Trade for Veteran Guard to Strengthen Their Backcourt Depth?

The Los Angeles Lakers' bench has been, to put it mildly, quite troubled this season.

First-year head coach J.J. Redick has toggled his starting five from its Day 1 group of point guard D'Angelo Russell, shooting guard Austin Reaves, small forward Rui Hachimura, All-NBA power forward LeBron James, and All-NBA center Anthony Davis. First, he demoted Russell, moved the 6-foot-5 Reaves down to the point, and inserted athletic, defense-first swingman Cam Reddish into starting lineup. When Reddish's offensive issues became glaringly apparent, Reddish made another big change, promoting rookie wing Dalton Knecht to that starting two-guard spot and banishing Reddish to the bench once again.

Redick's bench has been rocked by injuries, in addition to inconsistency. Back-up bigs Jarred Vanderbilt and Christian Wood have been out for all of the Lakers' first 25 games, while reserve center Jaxson Hayes been sidelined for several weeks, too.

Since moving to a permanent reserve role, Russell has provided a shooting spark, but his defensive shortcomings have made Redick reticent to play him a ton.

Gabe Vincent, meanwhile, is a solid defender whose offense has abandoned him ever since he joined Los Angeles in the summer of 2023. Guards Bronny James and Jalen Hood-Schifino, both selected in the last two drafts, do not look to be ready for prime time. Swingman Max Christie has flashed two-way ability, but has been somewhat erratic.

So maybe Los Angeles team vice president of basketball operations/general manager Rob Pelinka will look beyond his current group to fill out his depth this season.

2023 Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon, now languishing on the lowly Washington Wizards, is set to hit the 2024-25 trade market on an expiring $22.5 million contract, reports Evan Sidery of Forbes.

"If healthy, Brogdon could be a valuable guard to help stabilize a contending team’s second unit," Sidery writes.

Brogdon, 31, has missed 26 or more games in five of his nine pro seasons. This year with Washington, he has sat out 13 of the 3-19 Wizards' 22 games thus far. The 6-foot-4 playmaker, who has the size and physicality to at least hang with opponents defensively, is averaging 13.8 points on .495/.333/.844 shooting splits, 4.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists a night when he has been able to play. Those numbers are pretty modest, but as a reserve that's about all L.A. needs — a stabilizing presence who can shot, score and handle.

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