NBA LeBron James #6 of the Los Angeles Lakers seems on in opposition to the Chicago Bulls through the first half at United Heart on March 29, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: Consumer expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or utilizing this {photograph}, Consumer is consenting to the phrases and situations of the Getty Pictures License Settlement. (Picture by Michael Reaves/Getty Pictures)
NBA Trades: 5 splashy offers the Sixers could make to land a 3rd star
Regardless of a robust NBA offseason, the Los Angeles Lakers haven’t had a terrific begin to the 2023–24 season. To this point, they’re 5-5 and are lucky to be .500 after they managed to tug out a number of shut video games.
That lackluster begin has led to issues that the Lakers aren’t constructed for an additional deep playoff run. Furthermore, with rumors that groups are watching and ready to see if the Chicago Bulls will start a teardown, the Lakers names have unsurprisingly come up as attainable commerce companions.
NBA Rumors: The Lakers are linked to Chicago Bulls star Zach LaVine.
The Lakers have few remaining commerce property however have been speculated as a attainable touchdown spot for Bulls star Zach LaVine. LaVine would positively assist the Lakers, although he has an enormous contract that wouldn’t be straightforward to commerce for. Fortuitously for the Lakers, they correctly signed contracts this previous summer time that will make it simpler to match salaries in a deal for a star.
The most certainly possibility can be D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, and Taurean Prince, whose mixed salaries would get them inside $3 million of LaVine’s wage for this season. That might a minimum of make a deal attainable, with the Lakers additionally having the ability to provide a 2028 or 2029 first and one or two decide swaps in 2026 and 2028.
Would a Hachimura, Russell, Prince, a first-round decide (top-5 protected in 2028 and 2029) and a decide swap package deal be sufficient for them to accumulate LaVine? Presumably. Whereas LaVine is a desired participant, he’s owed $178 million over the following 4 seasons, making him a “nice player-bad contract” kind of star.
If the Bulls determine to make their greatest gamers out there and rebuild, then offloading LaVine’s contract and receiving a number of respectable gamers and good picks could also be an interesting possibility. In the meantime, the Lakers would enhance their probabilities of making it again to the Western Convention Finals and probably even the NBA Finals.
