Getty LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
As we move toward the start of training camp, it’s worth asking ourselves whether the Los Angeles Lakers front office has done enough to improve the team’s roster.
There’s no doubt that the rotation is more versatile heading into the new season, but the bigger question is, has the team improved defensively? Of course, there is still plenty of time to fix any holes within the roster construction, assuming Rob Pelinka and the front office are willing to start making moves.
Luckily, Heavy.com’s Jack Simone believes there is one trade that could change the entire outlook of the Lakers rotation next season, adding both perimeter defense and some high-level three-point shooting.
Simone’s trade looks like this:
Lakers receive
- Mike Conley
- Bojan Bogdanovic
- Patrick Beverley
- Either Malik Beasley or Jordan Clarkson
Utah receive
- Russell Westbrook
- Talent Horton-Tucker
- 2027 first-round draft pick
- 2029 first-round draft pick
“I think in order for the Lakers to be a playoff team, let alone a title contender – they need to deal Westbrook for depth. I think the days of Kyrie Irving, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis plus random roster pieces to win it all – I think star power matters less and less in today’s NBA…For that reason, I think the best deal the Lakers could do, is with the Utah Jazz,” Simone said during the latest episode of The Simone NBA Show.
By acquiring four veteran talents in return for Westbrook and Horton-Tucker, the Lakers would suddenly have one of the deepest rotations in the Western Conference, with Mike Conley being the ideal type of guard to pair with LeBron and Davis.
How do The Incoming Players Help the Lakers?
When you look at the names heading to Los Angeles in this proposed trade, it’s clear that two glaring areas of weakness are being addressed – perimeter shooting and point-of-attack defense.
LeBron, Los Angeles’ best defender, at his current age, is no longer a perimeter wing-stopper for a full 48 regular-season minutes – instead, he’s more of a weakside help defender who can also provide you with a physical presence on switches or early rotations. Basketball Index has LeBron rated as a C+ defender when tasked with point guards, a D+ defender on shooting guards, and a B+ defender when facing small forwards, power forwards, and a B defender centers – thus proving he is still a stellar defensive presence when not asked to limit the point-of-attack.
Mike Conley. BANG.
That’s where Conley and Beverley come in, as both hold reputations as being high-level perimeter defenders who specialize in guarding primary ball-handlers, while Conley is also a career 38.2% three-point shooter.
Speaking of shooting, regardless of whether Westbrook is on the Lakers roster or not, the roster needs additional marksmen – and Bogdanovic, a career 39.2% perimeter shooter, is the ideal addition to help space the floor for LeBron and Davis. While either Beasley or Clarkson would also ensure there’s some additional scoring off the catch and/or dribble coming off the bench.
Lakers Still Chasing Irving
Despite the Lakers claiming to have multiple options when it comes to trading Westbrook, it would seem the front office is committed to acquiring Kyrie Irving via trade.
Of course, there has been mixed messaging coming from Irving’s camp, with multiple reports stating that the superstar guard is happy to see out the final year of his deal with the Nets, before testing the waters in free agency next summer.
However, according to a recent report in the New York Daily News, Pelinka has had a change of heart in regards to what he’s willing to give up to make the deal happen. The report noted that Los Angeles is now considering including one of both of their future first-round picks to bring Irving to the Lakers, assuming Westbrook can be part of the deal.
Still, if the Lakers could pull off a deal similar to Simone’s proposal, then they should certainly take a closer look at that because it’s not every day you can revamp your bench rotation while shipping out a guard that doesn’t project to align with your style of play.