Expert Proposes Lakers Trade 2 Guards In Exchange For Recent 6th Man Of The Year

With just one week prior to the 2023-2024 NBA season, the scramble for last-minute offseason moves is in full swing.

As such, Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report recently walked through a pretty interesting acquisition that your Los Angeles Lakers could pull off.

Buckley suggests that the Lake Show moves off of the contract of current starting point guard D'Angelo Russell and newly-drafted guard Jalen Hood-Schifino to the Portland Trail Blazers, in exchange for reigning Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon.

"Remember, [Russell] held the starting point guard gig last season following his deadline arrival, but when L.A. faced elimination in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals, it yanked him out of the first five and tasked him with his fewest minutes of the playoffs," Buckley writes.

"He just isn't the most natural fit with LeBron James, as Russell does his best work with the ball in his hands and his worst work on the defensive end," Buckley continues. "If these two haven't found a great rhythm by the time Russell is trade-eligible in mid-December, it might be time for L.A. to cut its losses and move on."

"That's triply true if a Russell deal delivers a talent like Brogdon, who seems like a much more capable running mate for James.As long as Brogdon stays healthy—he played 75 games as a rookie and hasn't reached the 70-game mark since—he could thrive in Hollywood, since he can operate on or off the ball while capably defending either backcourt position," Buckley concludes.

Buckley's logic definitely makes sense, as there'd undoubtedly be an upgrade from Russell to Brogdon, at least on the defensive side of the ball. Offensively, it's a bit more comparable, but the on-/off-ball argument definitely favors Brogdon, meaning the fit would too.

The kicker in this trade to me, however, is Jalen Hood-Schifino. Russell and a pick for Brogdon is a lot more justifiable than trading JHS outright, especially given the Lakers' lack of a long-term plan at any position.

With how old a lot of the roster is, there's simply next to no reason to trade away your most recent high draft pick. If you were to trade him, a bigger deal than for Brogdon would probably be the most understandable, as if you were to trade for an all-star caliber player, JHS would certainly be a part of the deal.

Moreover, with the pickup of Gabe Vincent, who is also a solid off-ball player and contributes in a different way than D-Lo, the need to make a move for another guard seems unnecessary.

Another roster move at some point during the season is probably within the cards, but it's hard to tell what it'll be this early on.

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