The Los Angeles Lakers appear to be one of the front-runners to land Trevor Ariza via trade with the Phoenix Suns, but they won't give away any of their young core to do so, according to Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Turner writes:

Lakers won’t surrender Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kyzma or Josh Hart to Suns for Trevor Ariza, source. Suns turned down a 3-team proposal, source. And 2 sources confirmed Rockets called Lakers 2 weeks ago about trading for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. No deal is imminent.

It's no surprise that the Lakers are unwilling to trade any of their young core. They were hesitant to trade the young players for Kawhi Leonard over the summer. They won't part with any of their young stars to acquire Ariza, who is going to be a one-year rental.

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This opens up the possibility that Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is included in a deal that brings Trevor Ariza to Los Angeles. Caldwell-Pope is not happy with his current, and it appears that a trade involving Caldwell-Pope is an inevitability.

The Lakers are willing to make a few moves to bolster the roster in advance of the playoffs. The Western Conference is packed, but at 17-10, Los Angeles appears to be a likely playoff team barring any major injuries.

The trade market continues to heat up, with the Lakers sure to be heavily involved. They want to bolster the lineup around LeBron James, but they aren't willing to sacrifice the young core to do so.