Lakers Trade Rumors: $18.6 million guard's expiring contract key piece in deals to fix roster issues
The LA Lakers are currently eighth in the Western Conference with a 13-11 record. If the season ended today, they would be a play-in team, which is nowhere near where they hope to be. However, the season is far from over, and the 2020 champions could still turn things around.
One of the things that Rob Pelinka, the Lakers GM, is reportedly looking to do is acquire win-now assets via trade. Among LA's assets, the one piece that will be at the forefront of any packages the Lakers put together is D'Angelo Russell, according to Tim Bontemps in an article published by ESPN on Friday.
Aside from Russell, who has an $18.6 million expiring contract, Bontemps said LA has a few other assets they can dangle for a trade, but ultimately, these are limited. As such, he added that finding a trade partner could be challenging.
"The Lakers remain armed with D'Angelo Russell's $18.6 million expiring contract, plus several more minimum players on expiring deals, as well as their 2029 and 2031 first-round picks," Bontemps said.
"But it's going to be difficult for one trade to fix the myriad issues with the current roster. That has led to a belief among rival scouts and executives that the Lakers would love to find both a point guard and a big man to fill out their roster."
D'Angelo Russell re-signed with LA on a two-year, $36 million deal during the 2023 free agency. This season marks the final year of his deal.
Aside from Russell, Christian Wood, Jaxson Hayes and Cam Reddish are also on expiring contracts.
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Which players are on the Lakers radar ahead of the trade deadline?
Several names have been linked to the LA Lakers as possible trade targets. Stars such as Zach LaVine and Donovan Mitchell were once considered players the LA front office was targeting. They are no longer being linked to LA, but this has made way for new players to be listed as potential targets.
In line with Bontemps' report that LA is looking to acquire a center and a point guard, one of the players they are reportedly looking at is Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic, according to Brett Siegel.
The Bulls are reportedly ready to part ways with both Vucevic and LaVine, but among the two, the center is the more likely target to pair with LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Aside from Vucevic, players such as Brook Lopez and Jonas Valančiūnas have also been linked to the Lakers.
One player they can acquire through free agency is Markelle Fultz. According to NBA insider Anthony Irwin, the LA front office has had conversations about the 2017 No. 1 pick.
There are also a number of players whom LA is rumored to be interested in outside of the center and point guard positions.
According to Jake Fischer, some scouts have mentioned that a reunion between the Lakers and Brandon Ingram is possible. However, he also noted that LA hasn't indicated they are pursuing the New Orleans Pelicans forward.
There are also two Brooklyn Nets players who have been named in trade rumors with LA: Dorian Finney-Smith and Cam Johnson.