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The Los Angeles Lakers are among the favorites to land New Orleans Pelicans versatile defender Herb Jones if he is traded.
Bovada has installed reigning Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks as the leader of the pack at +350. But the Lakers are tied with the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder at +600 behind the Memphis Grizzlies (+400) and Milwaukee Bucks (+450).
Lakers’ crosstown rival Los Angeles Clippers (+650), Indiana Pacers (+1200) and Miami Heat (+1200) also made the betting list for Herb’s next team odds.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported on December 10 that Jones is one of the Pelicans players who are drawing interest in the trade market following the Pelicans’ horrendous start due to multiple injuries to their key players.
“The Pelicans are currently 5-20, in last place in the Western Conference, and now Ingram is out indefinitely with a significant low left ankle sprain. Williamson also remains sidelined indefinitely with a left hamstring strain suffered on Nov. 6. The Pelicans’ three All-Stars — Ingram, Williamson and Murray — have yet to play together. Teams have already started expressing interest in the Pelicans’ supporting cast players, such as Jones and McCollum,” Charania wrote.
Jones is in the second year of a team-friendly four-year, $53.8 million contract.
Herb Jones is 3-and-All-Defensive Wing
It is unclear if Jones is available or if the Lakers were among the teams who have expressed interest in him.
Nevertheless, the Lakers need a defensive stalwart such as Jones to shore up their bottom-five defense.
The 26-year-old Jones has a high upside as a 3-and-D wing. This season, Jones is averaging 10.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.9 steals while shooting 51.8 % from the field. His 3-point shot hasn’t been good this season, hitting only at a 29.2-percent clip. But last season, he showed flashes he could be a solid 3-and-D threat after making 41.8% of his 3-pointers and making it to the NBA All-Defensive First Team.
His 3-point shooting also seems bound to improve as the season goes on. Last season, he was a true 3-and-D threat, making 41.8 percent of his 3s and earning an All-Defense nod.
Jones could easily become the Lakers’ best perimeter defender since losing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso.
Lakers’ Known 3-and-D Trade Target
If Jones is unavailable or the Pelicans’ asking price is too high, the Lakers have a much cheaper, albeit older, option in Brooklyn Nets veteran wing Dorian Finney-Smith.
The Lakers have their eyes on Finney-Smith for quite some time now, according to Anthony Irwin of Clutchpoints.
“The Lakers checked in on Dorian Finney-Smith last year and have been in kind of constant contact with the Nets about him,” Irwin said during the November 25 episode of the “Lakers Lounge” show on X with his guest, Bleacher Report and The Stein Line’s “People Insider” Jake Fischer.
What Jones lacks in playoff experience, Finney-Smith has plenty of that as part of the Dallas Mavericks team that went to the Western Conference Finals in 2022.
More importantly, Finney-Smith is a relatively better 3-point shooter.
The 31-year-old Finney-Smith is sinking 43.2% of his 3-pointers this season while averaging 10.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game for the Nets this season.
According to Charania, the Nets have received exploratory trade interest in Finney-Smith, along with the Nets’ other two veterans Cam Johnson and Dennis Schröder.
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