Lakers Urged to Trade for NBA’s Top Playmaker to Pair With Anthony Davis

Getty Lakers head coach JJ Redick and Anthony Davis

While the Los Angeles Lakers‘ top priority is to acquire a big man, getting a star at a discounted rate warrants at least a consideration.

Such is the logic behind the trade proposal Zach Buckley Bleacher Report is pushing for the Lakers.

Los Angeles Lakers receive: Trae Young and Cody Zeller

Atlanta Hawks receive: D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, Jalen Hood-Schifino, a 2029 first-round pick and a 2027 second-round pick

Young is still one of the stars in the league as the assists leader, handing out a career-high 11.7 per game. But the Atlanta Hawks are starting to diversify their offense and are using him as a decoy rather than the main offensive cog.

Young’s 27.9 usage rate this season is a career-low.

With no market for Young, as The Ringer’s Kirk Goldsberry shared on “The Bill Simmons” podcast on November 13, the Lakers could pounce on the opportunity to acquire Young without giving up all their draft assets.

In this trade scenario, the Lakers essentially only give up a first-round and a second-rounder with all the players involved, except for Hachimura, already a sunken cost. But the Hawks are one of the three teams who showed interest in Hood-Schifino, per Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, that could grease the wheel of this potential blockbuster trade.

Hiding Trae Young’s Defensive Deficiency

Buckley contends the Lakers have the perfect defensive backbone to hide Young’s defensive deficiency, as a backcourt pairing with Austin Reaves would give JJ Redick the same predicament he had with Russell in the starting lineup.

The only difference is Young is a much more consistent outside threat and his ability to make plays is at an elite level.

“The Lakers, who have been linked to Young in the past, might still feel they need more star power and shot creation around LeBron James and Anthony Davis to contend for the crown. There would certainly be defensive questions upon Young’s arrival, but he could up the team’s three-point volume and ease James’s burden on the offensive end. And if anyone could successfully anchor a defense behind a Young-Austin Reaves backcourt, it just might be Davis. Zeller, who hasn’t played this season due to personal reasons, would simply help make the money work,” Buckley wrote.

What could make the Lakers pause about a potential Young trade is the financial commitment that is required, which could limit their roster-building flexibility.

Young is in the third year of a five-year, $215 million max contract. He is owed nearly $95 million over the next two years after this season with the last year as a player option.

Trae Young Trade ‘Believed to Have Been Discussed’

The Lakers are believed to have inquired about Young during their failed trade talks with the  Hawks for Dejounte Murray last season, according to Bleacher Report’s Eric Pincus.

“L.A. and Atlanta negotiated last season with talks surrounding Dejounte Murray (though Young is believed to have been discussed),” Pincus wrote on September 10.

Young, a three-time NBA All-Star, has remained in Atlanta while Murray was dealt to the New Orleans Pelicans this summer.

The Lakers have identified Young and Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell as their star trade targets in an internal discussion, ESPN reported in January.

But that was before Young dumped Klutch Sports, whose top clients are Lakers stars James and Davis, for Creative Artists Agency as his representation.