The Los Angeles Lakers have shown some signs of life at different points this season. Emphasis on some. Anthony Davis was playing at an MVP-level before his injury. LeBron James has turned it up a notch of late in his absence. Even Russell Westbrook has shined for stretches as a sixth man.
And yet two prevailing aspects of the Lakers' season remain. First, they're still well outside the Western Conference playoff picture at 13-20. Second, the Lakers need to dangle their future first-round picks in a trade to trigger their rise back up the standings.
LA's front office may not be as keen on the latter anymore given what they've seen so far based on the NBA rumor mill, per Lakers insider for The Athletic Jovan Buha:
“Reinforcements via trade would obviously help, and the Lakers are still evaluating their options on a dormant trade market. At the same time, it becomes increasingly challenging to justify trading a first-round pick if the group continues to struggle. The front office doesn’t want to compound its previous mistakes with more win-now moves.”
It makes sense from a short-term standpoint. LA doesn't own its first-round pick this year and would have to bear the brunt of giving up a potential lottery pick to the New Orleans Pelicans should they remain in the doldrums the rest of the way. A Lakers talent infusion via trade would likely net them at the very least a spot in the play-in tournament. But with so many factors having to go right – particularly Anthony Davis's health – it's hard seeing LeBron James lift his fifth Larry O'Brien trophy come June.
But come 2027 and definitely by 2029, LeBron James will not longer be on the Lakers. And if he inexplicably pulls a Tom Brady, he won't be the center of the team's universe any longer. Those picks could yield potential cornerstones for the future, a concept foreign to the purple and gold nowadays.
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