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Despite now sitting at an impressive 6-1 to start the season, the Lakers bench has been hit or miss so far. While they have an abundance of shooters across the board, they lack a strong wing defender and playmaking threat from the bench. Andre Iguodala is a name that has come up frequently since his trade to the Grizzlies and while he wouldn’t take over as the primary facilitator on the second unit, he is a smart and willing passer from the wing who will bring some high-level defense to the table.
Especially as the Lakers get Rajon Rondo and his facilitating skills back from injury, Iguodala seems to be the perfect fit to fill out the last open spot on the Lakers’ roster. However, his current standoff with the Grizzlies as well as some recent developments in the Iguodala trade market might throw a wrench into those plans.
Lakers Get Bad News on Andre Iguodala Buyout, Trade Talk Heats Up
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, both the Dallas Mavericks and Denver Nuggets have the ammunition to make a trade for Iggy. Seeing how both find themselves in the hunt for the playoffs (or in the Nuggets’ case a title), it would make sense to go after a veteran wing defender with heaps of championship experience. Both teams are fairly young and could use all the leadership they can get.
The Lakers simply don’t have the resources or ability to make a reasonable trade for Iguodala and seem to be sitting this out, hoping that no team is willing to trade for a 35-year-old rental on a $17 million deal. Should Iguodala slip through the cracks and remain on the Grizzlies until the trade deadline, it would make no sense for Memphis to hang onto him. At this point, it would be much more likely for the Grizzlies to simply waive him and the Lakers to scoop him up.
However, the universal thought that the Lakers will almost certainly land Iguodala in the event of a buyout could impact those negotiations. According to The Athletic’s David Aldridge, “The notion that Iggy to the Forum Blue and Gold seems to be so universally held a belief could certainly impact how hard other teams engage the Grizzlies in potential trade talks.”
At this point though, all Laker fans can do is sit back and hope that the “universally held belief” is enough to keep other teams at bay long enough to make it past the trade deadline.
Lakers Off to Best Start Since 2010-2011 Season
The opening night loss to the Clippers was no fun, however, the Lakers have turned things around and rattled off six straight wins. Behind one of the best defensive units in the league and the dynamic duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers have stormed to the top of the Western Conference standings. In fact, the Lakers are off to their best start since the 2010-2011 season that saw them start off the year on an 8-0 run.
Top dogs in the West, if the Lakers didn’t already have a massive bullseye on their back, they most certainly do now. The Lakers will look to extend the hot start against the Miami Heat on Friday and the Toronto Raptors on Sunday in a pair of home games.
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