Franchise star Luka Doncic would reportedly “absolutely love” if the Los Angeles Lakers could find a way to trade for New Orleans Pelicans‘ Karlo Matkovic, a 25-year-old stretch big with high upside.
The following potential Lakers trade is designed to make Doncic’s wish come true.
Lakers Trade Idea to Appease Doncic
Lakers would receive: Karlo Matkovic
Pelicans would receive: Jaden Hardy (via NTMLE), Dalton Knecht (via TPE)
The Pelicans, hard-capped at the first apron, will be using their NTMLE and TPE to acquire Hardy and Knecht, respectively. Meanwhile, the Lakers will trim their roster size from 16 to 15 in one fell swoop, while shoring up their frontcourt depth.
Why the Lakers Do It
Walker Kessler (five) and Kevon Looney (21) played a grand total of 26 games last season for their respective teams. While Kessler missed nearly the entire year for the Utah Jazz after undergoing shoulder surgery, Looney dealt with various injuries and became an afterthought in interim coach James Borrego’s rotation.
The Lakers will be taking a massive risk relying on just Kessler and Looney to carry their five man rotation next season, especially in a conference dominated by Victor Wembanyama and Nikola Jokic. While the 6-foot-10 Matkovic is a traditional stretch-4, he has the ability to play the five spot, giving JJ Redick an interesting wild card option.
One Western Conference coach recently told Heavy Sports’ Sean Deveney that Doncic would be thrilled if the Lakers could acquire Matkovic.
“Luka would absolutely love him,” the coach said of Matkovic. “Really great athleticism, I mean, if you put a pass near the rim, he is going to get up and get it and score. Very good help defense, he can make up ground and block shots if there’s a blow-by. The 3-pointer is still a work in progress, but he can do it.
“A lot of us saw him in Europe and playing for Croatia and he looked like a young guy who we thought would be more of a contributor by now. Sometimes it takes a little while, but he should be right there if he gets a chance.”
Why the Pelicans Do It
The Athletic’s Dan Woike reported last month that the Pelicans don’t intend to trade Matkovic after they picked up his team option at the start of the offseason. However, they should consider the move, given how crowded their front court is.
The Pelicans are expected to start Derik Queen at the five spot, with Yves Missi, DeAndre Jordan, Christian Koloko backing him up. Many feel Missi is ready to be a starting five, putting new head coach Jamahl Mosley in a tough spot.
The franchise has a a similar logjam at the four and three spots, with Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy III, Herbert Jones, Saddiq Bey, new acquisition Bennedict Mathurin, Micah Peavy, Trendon Watford and Matkovic expected to battle for minutes.
The Pelicans may be better off taking on the expiring contracts of Jaden Hardy (team option) and Dalton Knecht (team option) rather than holding onto Matkovic, who averaged just 14.7 minutes last season after logging 18.8 minutes as a rookie.
Lakers Proposed to Trade for Euro Stretch Big to Appease Luka Doncic