Lakers Could Acquire 41% Sharpshooter From Conference Rival

As the Los Angeles Lakers continue to take stock of their roster with the February 9 trade deadline looming, one would hope they commit to improving their perimeter scoring.

According to Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz, one player the Lakers front office should explore is Doug McDermott, a 41% career sharpshooter who is currently playing for conference rivals, the San Antonio Spurs.

“Winners of five of their last six games even without Anthony Davis, the Lakers simply can’t let another trade deadline slip by without doing anything of substance. They sit just a single game out of the West playoff picture, with LeBron James playing unbelievable basketball even at age 38…The Lakers don’t have the assets to make a run at a player like Bradley Beal, and they should be pursuing wing shooters instead…and McDermott would be a solid backup plan,” Swartz wrote.

The Spurs are currently in the early stages of a rebuild and would likely welcome the opportunity to acquire some young talent or expiring contracts to further strengthen their efforts to turn things around as quickly as possible. McDermott, 31, is currently averaging 10.3 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game while shooting 47.6% from the field and 41.5% from deep.

Lakers Have Inquired About Cam Reddish

According to a January 10 report by HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, the Lakers have engaged in some preliminary discussions surrounding potentially acquiring Cam Reddish from the New York Knicks – although they’re not the only team to show interest.

“The Knicks are willing to part with Reddish for two second-round picks, league sources told HoopsHype. The Lakers, Bucks, and other teams have inquired about the asking price for Reddish, who was shooting a career-high 44.9 percent from the field before being benched, HoopsHype has learned,” Scotto wrote.

Rob Pelinka Trolled Over Roster Construction

During an October 21 episode of Fox Sports’ First Things First, NBA analyst Nick Wright shared his frustrations with the Lakers’ current roster construction and laid the blame directly at the feet of Rob Pelinka.

“We know (Buddy Hield) and (Myles) Turner are available, we’re gonna wait and see if something better develops… That doesn’t justify, two straight post-seasons of building out a roster as if the three-point line didn’t exist. Which is what they’ve done. Last year, they went with old guys, ‘savvy veterans,’ this year ‘young, athletic guys.’ Neither year did they get shooters. (Matt) Ryan, he might need to start,” Nick Wright said.

If the Lakers want to maximize their opportunity of making the post-season this year, then they will need to be active in the trade market in the coming weeks. Otherwise, we will likely see the front office stand pat and wait until the summer when they can be players in the free agency market.