Getty Tyler Herro guarding George Hill.
Heading into this upcoming season, the Los Angeles Lakers roster looks really strong. They added some strong pieces and could be even better than last year’s championship team. While the additions of Marc Gasol, Dennis Schroder and Wesley Matthews should help the team’s 3-point shooting overall, they still probably won’t be one of the top teams from beyond the arc this season.
If that becomes a problem for the Lakers, they might need to look at a trade for a sharpshooter. Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report believes the team should trade Kyle Kuzma and Alfonzo McKinnie to Oklahoma City Thunder for George Hill:
All are support pieces, but those are all that’s needed when LeBron James and Anthony Davis serve as co-headliners. The Lakers could stand to snag another role player on the perimeter, though, as George Hill’s combination of spacing, secondary playmaking and defensive versatility would be more valuable to this roster than Kyle Kuzma’s isolation scoring or Alfonzo McKinnie’s on-ball defense.
Hill would be an effortless addition to the Purple and Gold. He may not have a standout skill, but he’s average in most things and above it in several. He can run offense or play off the ball, and he’ll pester either backcourt spot at the other end. He’d come to L.A. with a wealth of experience, a sliver of it which was even spent alongside James on the 2017-18 Cleveland Cavaliers.
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Lakers Have Reportedly Had Interest in Hill Recently
Buckley’s trade proposal isn’t too farfetched. There was a report earlier in the offseason that the Lakers had trade interest in Hill. Considering how the roster has been built, it wouldn’t be a surprise if they still had an interest.
Hill isn’t any help to a rebuilding Thunder team. He’s 34 years old and would be better off playing for a veteran team like the Lakers have constructed. He’s shot 38% from three in his career and is coming off a season in which he shot 46% from beyond the arc. If he shoots as he did last year, he’d be the Lakers’ best 3-point shooter.
Lakers Should See How Kuzma Does This Year Before Trading Him
Anytime there is trade speculation involving the Lakers, Kuzma’s name seems to pop up. He’s probably the team’s most tradeable asset due to the fact that he’s only 25 years old. However, the Lakers should play it slow with the young forward this season.
He was once considered one of their best pieces. He had a disappointing season last year but that doesn’t mean he can’t bounce back. In the preseason, Kuzma has played very well. There’s also been talk of him playing at the wing this year. Perhaps a change in role could be exactingly what he needs. Hill would be a good fit and he’s played with LeBron James in the past but the Lakers should at least try to stay as young as possible unless they have a glaring need that Kuzma can’t fill.
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Analyst Suggests Lakers Go ‘All-in’ on Trade for Sharpshooting Guard