According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Los Angeles Lakers are in talks with the Phoenix Suns to acquire Trevor Ariza.
The teams have been working to reach an agreement with a third team that would take on Lakers guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as part of a potentially larger deal, league sources said.
The Suns want to land a playmaking guard and a draft asset as the price of unloading Ariza, sources said. Phoenix and Los Angeles have made progress in third-team scenarios, although no agreements are close and both teams remain active in multiple trade discussions throughout the league, sources said.
In order to make the deal happen, the Lakers are searching for a third team to possibly take on Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the trade. According to Woj, the Lakers and Caldwell-Pope's agent, Rich Paul, have ‘shown a willingness to work' together on the right deal that would potentially give the sixth year guard more opportunities to show off his offensive talents.
Caldwell-Pope has only played 21.5 minutes per game this season, averaging 8.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.3 three-pointers per game on 38.6 percent shooting from the field and 34 percent from beyond the arc.
Meanwhile, it should come as no shock that, while Trevor Ariza signed a hefty deal with the Suns this past offseason, a 4-16 start to the season is surely not what he expected. While the 14th seed in the Western Conference is only a handful of games behind the first seed in the West, the Suns sit seven 13 games back.
In 24 appearances with the Suns this season, Ariza is averaging 9.7 points. 5.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.9 three-pointers on 36.8 percent shooting from the field and 34.8 percent from beyond the arc.
Wojnarowski adds that no trades can be completed until Saturday, December 15th, when players like Ariza and Caldwell-Pope, guys who signed new deals this past offseason, become eligible to be traded.
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