LA Lakers Rumors Roundup: Spurs want unprotected first round pick from Lakers for Russell Westbrook, team not interested in trading Talen Horton-Tucker for Patrick Beverley and more | July 16th, 2022
The LA Lakers are the only team currently looking to acquire Kyrie Irving from the Brooklyn Nets. However, the Nets are reluctant to accept Russell Westbrook in return. The Lakers might need help from an old Western Conference rival to facilitate the deal.
Meanwhile, the team has also been linked to veteran point guard Patrick Beverley. The Utah Jazz are in the middle of a rebuild and have made their veteran players available. The Lakers are interested in Beverley, but are reluctant to part ways with a young prospect.
Here is the latest LA Lakers rumors roundup for July 16 brought to you by Sportskeeda.
Spurs could land Russell Westbrook in 3-way trade with Lakers, Nets
San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich is famously known for not liking the LA Lakers. There were reports last season that Popovich did not want the Lakers to acquire DeMar DeRozan. However, it seems like the longtime Spurs head coach might have changed his mind about making deals with the Lakers.
According to LJ Ellis of Spurs Talk, the Spurs are interested in helping their old rivals acquire Kyrie Irving. Ellis noted that San Antonio is willing to absorb Russell Westbrook's monster contract in exchange for an unprotected first round pick. The Spurs have been stock piling picks since they started their full-blown rebuild.
The San Antonio Spurs have been quiet since trading Dejounte Murray even though they have more than $30 million in cap space. That may soon change: spurstalk.com/latest-spurs-i…
The problem for the Lakers is they are already short on first round picks after acquiring Anthony Davis in 2019. The team has been reluctant to trade their remaining picks for the decade because it could doom their future. LeBron James is on an expiring deal, while Davis has a player option for the 2024-25 season.
LA Lakers not interested in Talen Horton-Tucker for Patrick Beverley trade
One of the problems for the LA Lakers last season was their perimeter defense. The Lakers are looking for ways to solve it, and one particular player who could help them is Patrick Beverley. The Utah Jazz acquired Beverley as part of the Rudy Gobert deal, and they have made the veteran guard available.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Lakers are one of the teams interested in acquiring Beverley. Stein pointed out in his Substack report that the Jazz are looking for assets like young players or draft picks. But since the Lakers are short on picks, they could offer someone like Talen Horton-Tucker.
NBA Summer League Buzz column: marcstein.substack.com/p/leaving-las-…
However, the Lakers are reportedly not interested in trading Horton-Tucker. He averaged 10.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists last season. He's still just 21 years old and under team control until next season. The Iowa State product also has a player option for the 2023-24 season.
NBA analysts assess Anthony Davis' trade value
Anthony Davis is one of the best players in the NBA when healthy. Davis played in just 40 games last season, averaging 23.2 points, 9.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists. He suffered various injuries throughout the season, which was not a surprise since he's not known for his durability.
With Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving available for trade, it's possible that the LA Lakers might entertain the idea of dealing Davis. On a recent episode of his podcast (h/t Sports Illustrated), Bill Simmons of The Ringer released his annual trade value list. Simmons and Ryen Russillo discussed Davis' current trade value.
"It's still year 11 for him," Simmons said. "We have a lot of time to go. ... I feel like the journey, I'm just not ready to write him off as a top 12 guy yet. I do think if they dangled him, he'd have an incredible amount of value. There's just not a lot of people like him."