Getty Rob Pelinka, vice president of basketball operations and general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers talks with Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics at Crypto.com Arena on December 25, 2023.
The Los Angeles Lakers‘ 126-115 loss to the Boston Celtics on Christmas Day showed how far they are from contention.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski revealed that “speed and athleticism are certainly a priority” for the Lakers as they look for a roster upgrade at the trade deadline. Wojnarowski revealed the team’s priorities in a response to a Lakers fan on Threads on Wednesday, December 27.
Multiple reports have pointed the Lakers to two athletic and speedy guards — Atlanta Hawks’ Dejounte Murray and Chicago Bulls’ Zach LaVine.
Both guards are 6-foot-5 gifted scorers who can provide a scoring boost to the Lakers’ bottom-seven offense.
Interestingly, both players are under Klutch Sports, who has close ties to the Lakers organization.
Rob Pelinka, the Lakers’ vice president of basketball operations and general manager, has an affinity with Klutch Sports, who have four clients on the team led by their top stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Starters Cam Reddish and Jarred Vanderbilt are their other two Klutch Sports players.
But Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, James’ childhood friend and longtime business associate, pushed back at the Lakers narrative.
Which Klutch Sports Star to Trade?
Between LaVine and Murray, the Hawks guard is the better defender. Murray is also on a cheaper contract ($120 million over four years) which makes it easier to fit into the Lakers’ books.
The Lakers already owed massive contracts to James ($51 million player option next season) and Davis, who signed a three-year, $186 million max contract extension to remain with the team through 2028.
Murray will have a robust market if the Hawks make him available, making him the costlier trade to make than LaVine.
The Bulls star’s injury risk, his lack of playoff playoff-winning resume and his expensive deal have turned off buyers.
LaVine has three years remaining on his current contract, plus a player option for 2026-27 for a combined $178 million owed.
Darvin Ham Urged to Use ‘Best’ Starting 5
Retired two-time champion Lamar Odom suggested that the Los Angeles Lakers should roll out the team’s best five even before Darvin Ham made the weird lineup switch.
A starting five of their three best players — LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Austin Reaves — flanked by the wing tandem of Rui Hachimura and Jarred Vanderbilt “would be a problem,” Odom posted on X (formerly Twitter) after suggesting a lineup change during the December 22 episode of his podcast “The LADE Show” with Aron Cohen.
But instead of using the best five that worked for the Lakers in their last playoff run, Ham went with James, Taurean Prince, Reddish, Vanderbilt and Davis.
Ham touted the lineup switch as a big step in creating a defensive identity. But at the expense of shrinking the Lakers spacing in their half-court sets.
Lakers’ new starting lineup in 18 minutes:
– 105.0 offensive rating (worse than 30th-ranked Spurs)
– 125.0 defensive rating (worse than 30th-ranked Wizards)
– -20.0 net rating (worse than 30th-ranked Spurs)
– 40.0 eFG%
– 46.8 TS%
Minuscule sample size but it’s been a disaster.
Opposing defenses are not respecting Reddish (30% 3-point shooter) and Vanderbilt (0 0f 9 3s this season), as the Celtics showed the blueprint on how to beat this new-look Lakers starting five: pack the paint.
Odom’s starting five will only leave Vanderbilt as the non-shooter in the lineup but his versatility on defense will likely make up for it.
Reaves (36.8%) and Hachimura (37.8%) will provide more spacing for James and Davis with their gravity. Hachimura and Vanderbilt’s length at the wing will cover up Reaves’ defensive deficiencies.