Getty Draymond Green, Los Angeles Lakers
Draymond Green has become the new focus of Los Angeles Lakers fans, with many believing that he could end up in Lakerland before the start of the 2023-24 NBA season.
According to a Western Conference Executive, who spoke with Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney under the condition of anonymity, finding a trade that works for both sides would be difficult, but not impossible.
Stephen A. Smith: Draymond Green expecting this to be last year with Warriors and wants to be on Lakers
“Things would have to get pretty bad for the Warriors before they would dump Draymond. But, you don’t know, because you don’t know the dynamics going on in that locker room. If they have had it with him – and by that, I mean Steph and Klay – then, OK, you could see a trade coming up. They know how important he is, though. The Lakers don’t have anything real they can give back to the Warriors in any kind of trade.
You’d have to build it around, what, Patrick Beverley and Lonnie Walker? Or Kendrick Nunn? So, the only thing the Lakers could offer Golden State that might be worth it is the two picks they have – send out all those guys plus the picks in 2027 and 2029. They (Los Angeles) like Draymond, LeBron wants Draymond, and Draymond has been following LeBron around like a puppy dog these last couple of years. But I can’t see them giving up those two picks for him, not at his age and not with him being a free agent next summer anyway,” The executive said.
Of course, if the Lakers could acquire Green, he would significantly improve their chances of making a deep playoff run due to his experience and ability as a disruptor on the defensive side of the floor.
Potential Sign & Trade a Possibility?
If the Lakers are apprehensive about using their future draft assets to acquire Green due to his current contract situation with the Golden State Warriors, there is another way all parties can make a deal work. Right now, Green is in the third year of a four-year deal, with the final year a player option.
If Gree wants to relocate to Los Angeles, and the Warriors have interest in a potential trade package, all parties could work towards a potential sign-and-trade deal, where Green opts out of the final year on his deal, then agrees to a longer-term contract before getting traded to the Lakers.
There is a drawback, however. When a team acquires a player via a sign-and-trade, they instantly become hard capped for the upcoming season, and that would severely hinder the Lakers’ ability to continue reconstructing their roster – especially via the free agent market.
As such, there is no surefire way the Lakers can acquire Green without weighing up the risk-reward value of making a deal, and given the team’s serious need for perimeter shooting, it would be interesting to see them go all-in on yet another non-shooter.
Rob Pelinka Willing to Give LeBron a Contending Team
On September 26, Rob Pelinka attended the Lakers’ media day coverage to inform reporters that he was committed to doing whatever is necessary to give LeBron James the contending team he deserves.
Rob Pelinka addressee the rumors of Lakers trades and trading draft picks this offseason. He said he will make a trade, including draft picks, to improve the team if it’s the right deal.
“Let me abundantly clear: We have one of the great players in LeBron James to ever play the game, on our team. He committed to us with a long-term contract, a three-year contract. So of course we will do everything we can, picks included, to make deals that give us a chance to help LeBron get to the end.
He committed to our organization, that’s gotta be a bilateral commitment. But let me be also clear, that you have to understand the CBA and the Stepien rule…You have one shot to make a trade with multiple picks. So if you make that trade, it has to be the right one, you have one shot to do it, so we’re being very thoughtful around the decisions on when and how to use draft capital in a way that will improve our roster,” Pelinka said.
If Pelinka and the Lakers’ front office identify Green as the player who can take the Lakers to the next level and back to the playoffs, it’s likely that we see Los Angeles’ interest in the veteran champion intensify over the coming months.