As quoted by NewsDay.com’s Steven Marcus, Kupchak believes his team is already facing an uphill battle, and dealing a star player in a blockbuster move would only make things worse:
We will not make a trade. We will not trade Dwight Howard. We have no intention of making a trade. It's unlikely that we'll make any trade with any of our principal players. To make another change at this time of the year being behind the eight-ball like we are, I think that would just make it more difficult. The talent is there. We have to find our way.
Still, there is plenty of time left until the deadline, and if the Lakers can’t manage to turn things around quickly, Kupchak may have to do something to ensure the Lakers won’t completely unravel before the playoffs.
According to Marc Stein of ESPN, a source with knowledge of the situation believes Toronto has interest in trading for Gasol before the deadline, potentially using Andrea Bargnani as a trade chip for the deal.
Bargnani has not played well this season, and with the Raptors now apparently loading up for a second-half push, president Bryan Colangelo could be looking for that one piece to put his team over the top.
The problems surrounding the Lakers’ current situation are plentiful. Dwight Howard has been suffering from a nagging shoulder injury, and even when the duo is healthy, head coach Mike D’Antoni doesn’t like playing Howard and Gasol on the court together. The entire situation has resulted in a lack of chemistry that hasn’t gone unnoticed when looking at the standings.
Gasol has played well from his bench role, but as one of the highest-paid players in the league, it wo...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
