Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers desperately need to shake up their roster but will be hard-pressed to find ways to do so. Nearly every contract on their roster is either a max deal, like LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, and Anthony Davis’s or a minimum.
That means that General Manager Rob Pelinka will have to get creative in the trade market to try to find ways to upgrade the roster if he wants to build a contender around King James.
Luckily for the Los Angeles Lakers, Lu Dort is currently on one of the most palatable contracts in the entire league. Next season, he’ll be playing for a measly $1.9 million. That means that LA could flip any number of veteran minimum contracts and take back Dort’s deal in exchange. They even have a $2.7 million traded player exception that will expire in August if they don’t use it.
After landing the second-overall pick in the upcoming draft, OKC’s tanking days should be coming to an end soon — maybe not next season but soon-ish.
LATEST NBA NEWS AND TRADE RUMORS: Luguentz Dort Showcasing Major Value For OKC Thunder
Even so, Thunder General Manager Sam Presti likely won’t turn down the chance to add a first-round pick from the Lakers several years down the line, an asset that could turn into a real commodity once LeBron makes his inevitable exit from LA.
Adding an elite point-of-attack defender, budding shooter, and secondary creator would make life easier on the Los Angeles Lakers Big 3, and the cost of acquiring Dort should be right in LA’s wheelhouse.
