NBA trade deadline: 2 talented player to join the Lakers “Which trade is the best ?
The Los Angeles Lakers are prioritizing a championship-caliber role player and a former All-Star guard as the trade deadline approaches.
Shams Charania of The Athletic predicts that the Lakers will pursue trade negotiations for Bruce Brown or Dejounte Murray up to the trade deadline of February 8.
During the January 24 FanDuel TV episode of “Run It Back,” Charania stated, “I’m told the Lakers are still keeping an eye on two players.” When it comes to trade deadline targets, Dejounte Murray of Atlanta and Bruce Brown Jr. of Toronto are at the top of the list. I anticipate having further interactions with them over the following two weeks.
Only the Lakers and the Atlanta Hawks had in-depth discussions over Murray. The inclusion of Austin Reaves, who the Lakers are fiercely keeping off the table, is the main source of contention in their prior trade discussions.
According to Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer, Atlanta is still demanding two first-round picks in addition to a starting-level talent.
In exchange for Murray, Los Angeles offered a 2029 first-round draft pick, a resurgent D’Angelo Russell, and a pick swap.
According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, the Lakers are leading the Murray sweepstakes.
On the January 23 episode of “The Athletic NBA Show” podcast, Amick stated, “It’s a question of like how long does [Hawks general manager] Landry Fields hold out but it feels like that Lakers have separated themselves from the Dejounte pack and it feels like, to some degree, they’ve locked in on him as a guy that they think can help them.”
However, Brown has been a target for the Lakers ever since the offseason.
The Lakers reportedly made an attempt to sign him from Indiana and will keep in contact with Toronto, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Lakers Angling for Trae Young or Donovan Mitchell
After pushing all their chips to a Russell Westbrook trade that ultimately backfired, the Lakers are mulling another “all-in” deal for a star, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
“The Lakers have discussed internally the possibility of packaging three picks, along with players they already have on their books, to pursue a bona fide star, such as Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers or Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks, team sources told ESPN,” McMenamin wrote on January 23.
If the Lakers elect not to pursue Murray or Brown at the trade deadline, they will have access to 3 tradable first-round picks beginning in June’s NBA Draft.
Young will enter the third season of a five-year, $215 million max deal next season. On the other hand, Mitchell will enter next season with only one guaranteed year left in his five-year, $163 million contract. The Cavaliers star is expected to decline his player option after next season.
