Lakers Trade Rumors: Analyzing Buzz on Goran Dragic, Ty Lawson and More

With hours to go before the trade deadline, the Los Angeles Lakers have several important decisions to make. They want to build a roster that can contend next year, which is no small task for a 13-40 team, but can't afford to deal any of their key assets to do so. 

Fortunately, the Lakers don't have any players on the roster who should be considered untouchable. Kobe Bryant and Julius Randle aren't going anywhere because they are injured, but everyone else should be in play. 

The down side is no one on the roster is going to bring that much in return, so it's going to take some unique maneuvering by general manager Mitch Kupchak to satisfy the franchise's many needs. He's pulled rabbits out of thin air before—see: Pau Gasol in 2008—and will have to do it again.

There's no shortage of rumors and speculation around the Lakers right now, so it gives us plenty to chew on until the 3 p.m. deadline. 

 

The Dragic Package



The saga involving Goran Dragic and the trade deadline keeps getting weirder. It started with Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reporting that Dragic's camp had given a list of teams where he would prefer to play:



Going back a few days before Wojnarowski's report, ESPN's Marc Stein wrote the Lakers have long been fascinated by Dragic:

The Lakers, meanwhile, also have coveted Dragic for some time and likewise are said to be intent on testing the Suns' resolve when it comes to their Slovenian point guard. Sources say L.A. plans to chase Dragic this summer anyway with an aggressive four-year offer that would be valued as high as an estimated $80 million if it approaches max-contract territory.

It would seem that the Lakers and New York Knicks are the two biggest dominoes in this scenario, though neither team would seem to have anything that would satisfy what the Suns are looking for. Af...