Getty Rob Pelinka looks ahead.
The Los Angeles Lakers have yet to make a meaningful move in free agency, which is concerning after they finished seventh in the Western Conference and lost in the first round to the Denver Nuggets.
Despite the slow start to free agency, Jovan Buha of The Athletic reported that the Lakers have been in active trade talks with three teams recently.
“It’s too early to write the Lakers off, of course. There’s always a chance they pull a rabbit out of a hat with a trade or signing. They have been active in recent days, discussing potential deals with Portland, Brooklyn and Utah, among other teams, according to league and team sources,” Buha wrote on July 2.
“Vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka tends to operate in the shadows — more so this summer than ever, according to league sources. It’s certainly possible he has a contingency plan that saves the offseason.”
Lakers Plan After Missing Out on Klay Thompson
The Los Angeles Lakers had a strong interest in landing Golden State Warriors legend Klay Thompson. According to Buha, he was “atop the wish list” for LeBron James.
Instead, Thompson landed with the Dallas Mavericks in a sign-and-trade.
James is open to taking less money than the three-year max, but only if it’s for a player who can help the Lakers win now. Buha reported that DeMar DeRozan is another player he’d be interested in the Lakers landing.
“After missing out on Thompson, the Lakers quickly turned their attention to another James target: free-agent wing DeMar DeRozan. Similar to Thompson, DeRozan, 34, is both a potential non-taxpayer midlevel exception candidate and a sign-and-trade candidate for Los Angeles, according to league sources. He is another player whom James would be willing to take less for, league sources confirmed and ESPN first reported.
“DeRozan is a 15-year veteran and six-time All-Star who is likely leaving his current team, the Chicago Bulls,” Buha wrote. “He has deep Southern California ties as a Los Angeles native and USC alum, and has fondly discussed the potential of playing for the Lakers in recent years. The Lakers pursued him in the summer of 2021 before deciding to trade for Russell Westbrook instead.”
How the Lakers Could Land DeRozan
The Los Angeles Lakers could facilitate a sign-and-trade with the Chicago Bulls to land DeRozan, but they’d have to move pieces to match his salary.
However, similar to the Thompson situation, there is a hold-up due to figuring out who the Lakers would send to the Bulls.
“Similar to the Thompson sign-and-trade discussions, one of the current hold-ups in a potential DeRozan deal is what the Bulls would be receiving from the Lakers, according to league sources,” Buha wrote.
“Outside of DeRozan, it’s unclear which players would reach the threshold of prompting James to take a sizable pay cut.”
DeRozan would be an interesting fit, as he’s only attempted more than 2.0 3-point shots per game in a season three times. With the Lakers already being a team that needs to improve in that department, it does add questions. Los Angeles attempted the fewest 3-pointers per game a year ago.
Still, the 6-time All-Star averaged 24.0 points per game last season and would add another scoring option for Los Angeles.