On the eve of free agency, here are the latest Lakers rumors on D’Angelo Russell trade talk, Max Christie and potential trade targets like Jerami Grant and Kyle Kuzma.
The Lakers dove headfirst into free agency rumors on Saturday, with the news that LeBron James is open to taking less than the maximum on his next contract. Pair that with the team’s interest in Klay Thompson and things have really kicked off.
Let’s take a look at all the latest rumors related to that and more.
Before the LeBron/Klay madness, the surprise of the weekend was D’Angelo Russell opting into his contract. It gives the Lakers a really big trade chip and the ability to upgrade their roster.
Jovan Buha of The Athletic — the real MVP of this rumor rundown — reported in his latest YouTube video that the Lakers are being aggressive in trying to trade him.
“As I reported last night, I’ve been told the Lakers are going to be aggressive in pursuing potential trades for [D’Angelo Russell].”
Vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka made it well known that it is difficult to make trades under the new CBA. But the Lakers unexpectedly have a real chance to upgrade their roster this offseason and have to try as hard as they can to do so.
In looking for a trade of Russell, the Lakers likely will target wings. They won’t be cheap as every team in the league covets them, but there’s a handful of names worth keeping in mind, according to Buha's article on Saturday evening.
Still, there are good options potentially out there. Wings such as Portland’s Jerami Grant, former Lakers player Kyle Kuzma and the Nets’ duo of Dorian Finney-Smith and Cam Johnson are expected to be available on the trade market, according to league sources.
It’s important to mention that the wording on this is important. None of these names are linked to the Lakers, just names expected to be available.
Most of these are familiar names, though. The Lakers have chased Grant for years, even before he landed in Portland. Kuzma is an obvious one. Dorian Finney-Smith has been a name linked to the Lakers since last year’s draft.
Cam Johnson is the new name of the bunch. With the Nets seemingly tearing it down, a fire sale could be in order and Johnson has value, having hit 39.1% of his 3-pointers last season.
Given the high-profile nature of many Lakers rumors that will come, Max Christie will probably fly under the radar once free agency begins. The Lakers tendered him a qualifying offer to make him a restricted free agent and have every intention to re-sign him.
Buha reported in his article that the Lakers see Christie as a rotation player next season.
The front office would like to retain Christie and envision him as a rotation player next season, according to those sources.
Realistically, he should have been a rotation player last season, but that season is dead and gone. Ironically, it might have saved them some money this summer not to have him be a rotation player.
So long as he’s playing legitimate minutes next season, though, fans will be happy.
The Lakers are going to make a run at Klay this summer and it’s easy to imagine that they’ll be one of the favorites. It’s also known that he’ll come on the mid-level exception.
According to Marc Stein in a Substack newsletter on Saturday, Thompson wants at least a three-year deal.
Thompson is said to be seeking a three-year deal at a minimum. The cap space teams are believed to prefer shorter contract structures than Thompson covets but can offset that with higher dollar amounts than teams like the Mavericks and Nuggets can muster.
Thompson just turned 34, so a 3-year deal would take him through age 37. It’s a risk, but these are the risks a team has to take when LeBron is both entering his final seasons and making a sacrifice like this.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.
