Lakers Trade Pitch Swaps D’Angelo Russell, Picks for $20 Million ‘Dunk Machine’

Getty Anthony Davis and Jarrett Allen battling for a rebound during an April 6 game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers.

For a team boasting Anthony Davis and LeBron James at the forefront of its roster, the Los Angeles Lakers were quiet this offseason. Outside of drafting Bronny James and Dalton Knecht, they’ve avoided operating outside of the margins.

Could it be that Rob Pelinka and the Lakers front office are waiting for more options to present themselves down the line? Michael Pina of The Ringer invested in that hypothetical in a column making “22 Bold Predictions” for the upcoming NBA season.

Pina predicted that Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen will be traded midseason. And that Los Angeles, amongst other teams, have the means to land him.

Lakers receive: Allen

Cleveland receives: D’Angelo Russell, Christian Wood, two first round picks, one of Knecht/Rui Hachimura

Allen is coming off of his eighth career season, and fourth as a member of the Cavaliers. In 77 regular-season appearances last year, he averaged 16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.1 blocks per game.

He and Davis would make for a Lakers defense that’s almost impassable, with both bigs capable of traveling the perimeter. As the Cavaliers continue investing in Evan Mobley, who’s NBA future is at the center spot, maximizing on Allen’s value feels inevitable.

Pina: Lakers Build ‘Menacing Defense’ with Allen, Davis

Pina’s argument for the Lakers going all in is the defensive upside of an Allen/Davis frontcourt.

“Spacing issues aside, if the Lakers do this they would immediately boast one of the two or three most menacing defenses in the Western Conference,” Pina wrote on October 21. “Allen is a mobile big who can switch along the perimeter and quickly slide from the weakside to contest shots at the rim.”

He also made the case that Davis is better than Mobley, and could help maximize Allen’s skillset.

“Next to Anthony Davis (one of the few big men alive who’s a better defender than Mobley, and someone who doesn’t want to spend the rest of his career banging around the paint) Allen could be incredible, with an offensive skill set that’s nothing to sneeze at, either,” Pina continued. “He’s a lob-catching dunk machine who sets some of the firmest screens in the league.”

If there’s anything not to like about an Allen/Davis front court, it’s the spacing. Neither big men shoots league-average from behind-the-arc, which would hurt floor generals Austin Reaves and Gabe Vincent.

Congestion in the halfcourt is a weakness almost always exposed in the playoffs. And that’s assuming that Los Angeles makes it out of the gauntlet that is the Western Conference. They finished 47-35 last season, and eighth in the conference standings.

D’Angelo Russell the Odd-Man Out in LA

Neither of Russell or the Lakers seem interested in continuing their partnership. The 11-year guard didn’t give Los Angeles a choice when he opted into his $18 million player option, after previous reports suggested he’d pursue free agency.

That doesn’t mean the Lakers have to keep him. And it doesn’t mean that Russell wants to be in Los Angeles, either. The 28-year-old took the guaranteed money with plans to revisit free agency next summer, remaining eligible as a trade chip, too.

Russell was a solid regular-season performer last year: 18 points, 6.3 assists, and 3.5 rebounds per game on an above average 45/41/82 shooting split. But his production fell off a cliff in the playoffs for a second-straight year. He managed just 14.2 points per game on 38/31/50 shooting splits in their five-game loss to the Denver Nuggets.

As the 2024-2025 regular season gets underway, look for Russell’s name to continue popping up on the rumor mill. He and the Lakers have next-to-no mutual interest in a future together, and he’s on an expiring salary, to boot.