The Los Angeles Lakers are going to make everybody on their current roster available for potential trades once the off-season officially begins on July 1.
In an interview with Rodney Peete and Freed Rogin on AM570, Mark Medina of Los Angeles Daily News said that he’s expecting the president of basketball operations Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka to make every player on the team including young talents available on the trading block in an attempt to salvage the established star.
"No one is safe. They don't have a Kobe Bryant on the team anymore, so everyone is on the table right now," said Medina, who stressed a trade could be as minuscule as trading veteran swingman Corey Brewer or as huge as dealing away former no.2 overall picks D’Angelo Russell and Brandon Ingram.
Still All in for PG13
According to Anthony Irwin of SB Nation, the Lakers are closely monitoring the progress of the Eastern Conference first-round series match-up between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Indiana Pacers.
An easy series victory for the Cavs would only give Paul George more reasons to leave the Pacers for the opportunity of winning elsewhere.
At the trade deadline, the Lakers were actively discussing with Pacers’ executives regarding a deal that would send George to his hometown, Los Angeles. Although the trade did not materialize, many NBA insiders feel the Lakers still top the list of destinations for George once his contract expires in 2018.
However, there’s another way to speed up George’s LA homecoming. With his free-agency looming, the Pacers could simply deal their star to another team in exchange for young players and additional assets this off-season. The Lakers will try to put Ingram, Russell and Julius Randle off the table as much as possible, although they might eventually package one or two of their young studs if it’s necessary to seal the deal.
Hoping for Lottery Luck
The Lakers could get another chance of adding one more young prospect once they land a top-3 pick in upcoming Draft Lottery on May 16. Los Angeles has 47 percent chance of keeping their lottery pick and 16 percent of taking the no.1 overall pick. Failing to land a top-3 pick means the Philadelphia 76ers will get theirs.
Pelinka already stated their plan to attack the draft, if they retain their pick aggressively. UCLA’s Lonzo Ball, Kansas’ Josh Jackson, and Washington’s Markelle Fultz are some of the prospects the Lakers taking a closer look. Then again, the possibility of packaging the pick is another option for the Lakers executive.
