Getty Marcus & Markieff Morris.
NBA trade rumors are heating up and these latest ones link the Los Angeles Lakers to a couple of big men. First, Brad Turner is reporting that the team is interested in New York Knicks forward Marcus Morris. The Lakers have been linked to Morris in the past, but nothing has materialized yet. If the team wants him, it’s going to cost.
Lakers/Clippers in trade conversations about Knicks’ Marcus Morris, sources. NY interested in Kyle Kuzma; would need Danny Green’s contract to make work. NY would want to move Green to another team. Clippers willing to part with Mo Harkless, but like Landry Shamet, who NY wants.
The Knicks like Kyle Kuzma and a Morris for Kuzma swap would probably be enough to make the trade happen. However, it’s not so simple. Kuzma’s contract is incredibly cheap, so in order to make the money work, the Lakers would have to give up Danny Green. That seems like a big piece to lose for a team that is thriving. Morris is a journeyman and wouldn’t exactly fill a position of great need for the team. It’s hard to imagine the Lakers actually do that trade.
Lakers Interested in Another Morris
If the Lakers feel like the price would be too great for Marcus, they could go after his less productive twin brother Markieff, who is currently with the Detriot Pistons. According to Kevin O’Connor, the Lakers are among the teams that have inquired about Markieff.
Marcus Morris and the Knicks have everyone’s attention, but the Pistons have also received calls from multiple contenders for his brother, Markieff Morris.
The Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Sixers, and Celtics are among those teams interested in Markieff Morris, per league sources.
It remains to be seen how much Markieff would cost, but he’s likely not worth Kuzma. If the Pistons were somehow able to package him with Derrick Rose, then maybe there’d be a way to work it out. The money issue with Kuzma is going to cause problems with almost any trade the team makes with him, so the Lakers may need to give up a veteran if they want to send him away. However, neither of the Morris brothers are worth the cost. Marcus is a talented power forward, but he’s not worth Kuzma and Danny Green. It will certainly raise some eyebrows if the team makes that trade.
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The Lakers are apparently making the rounds all around the league as they have inquired about several players. Outside of the Morris brothers, the team reached out to the Oklahoma City Thunder about Dennis Schroder, per Dave McMenamin. While he would certainly fit a need, he’s likely out of the Lakers’ price range as McMenamin points out.
The Lakers inquired about Dennis Schröder as they look to fortify the PG position leading up to the trade deadline, sources told ESPN. The conversation did not go very far, as OKC — currently the No. 7 seed in the West — were not looking to move him without a hefty return.
The rumors don’t stop there as the Lakers have also reached out to the Brooklyn Nets about Spencer Dinwiddie, per ESPN’s Zach Lowe. Dinwiddie would be an interesting pickup as he’s an effective scorer and would fill a need the Lakers have been looking for at point guard. There hasn’t been word as to what he might cost, but it will likely at least take Kuzma.
Kuzma seems to be Los Angeles’ most appealing asset to a lot of teams. That said, it’s going to be hard for the Lakers to make the money work with pretty much any player they try to add. Darren Collison seems like a logical consolation prize as he wouldn’t require the team to make a trade. However, the fact that the Lakers appear to be going hard after point guards may point to the fact that they either aren’t sold on him or that they believe he may end up with another team.
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