However, one of the most attention-grabbing theories floated recently has actually concerned the offseason rather than the present, with Colin Cowherd of Fox Sports Radio’s The Herd speculating that L.A. would be willing to swap its young core for established stars.
“The Lakers would trade three of them,” Herd offered. “They’d like to keep Julius Randle. They’d move the other three, to rebuild it with multiple free agents, and Randle’s the only one they really truly believe is ready very quickly to be on a really good NBA team.”
Next summer is still quite a ways off. But the notion of the front office giving up on D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. seems quite a stretch nonetheless.
Although currently trailing the Western Conference with a record of 8-27, this rebuilding squad has actually shown signs life as of late, riding a three-game winning streak after blowing out the Phoenix Suns Sunday night.
Management may be content to develop its young players for now, while also hoping for a top-three protected draft pick in the spring.
There certainly are some expendable pieces to barter with in the interim, however. And identifying underperformers or those whose skill sets unnecessarily overlap with teammates is the first step of any potential upgrade.
Roy Hibbert
The Lakers’ biggest plausible trade chip, bar none, is Roy Hibbert. The Lakers acquired the massive 7’2” center from the Indiana Pacers this summer, in return for a future second-round pick and the absorption of his $15,514,031 salary for the year. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent in June.
This expensive test drive was an attempt to solve...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
