All things number 4. Trade or draft? Let the rumors begin

[Spens1]

Read on Twitter

The hand of the King!!! King James' hand??

Well if Lebron is Dany........

Watch your back Kuz

[meetbishop]

I don't care if we do trade for AD

But please, please don't trade Ingram and King Kuzma in the package - I mean 1 OR the other is ok, just not both

We need to keep at least one of the above 2 they will be great in a year or 2

At this stage, the only offer I will give NO is Ingram + Hart +(others not Ball or Kuz) +#4 and future 1st.

[iamworthy]

I'd overpay to get AD here.

[NBAWestFan]

There is a Stud at #4 that does not play LBJ's position

Don't trade the pick but draft #4 who was a gift.

Keep the gift and get another Superstar.

Who is it?


Zion
Ja
Barrett

???

There are too many from other teams who might snag him ahead of us.

I could see a team trading a player to move up in the draft ahead of us.

Draft picks don't come that often so I would keep the pick. This is a HIGH pick so no don't trade this years pick. Trade only BI, Hart & a future #1 like in 2020 for AD who must be traded.

Some may offer more but for the Lakers that is a pretty good offer as BI has length to go with Zion.

[Penberthy]

What about trading down to NO for #7 and #37. Sign 27 yr old kyrie and let the young guys continue to improve. Kyrie is arguably just about to enter his prime, and will hit it just as the youth core is finally peaking as well. If Lebron wants to be traded because of this, so be it. But for now:

Kyrie (34) Ball (14)
Hart (24) Ball (16) Caruso/Bonga (8)
Kuzma (16) Ingram (32)
Lebron (32) Kuzma (16)
McGee (24) Wagner/#7/#37 (24)

[RamonSessions7]

What about trading down to NO for #7 and #37. Sign 27 yr old kyrie and let the young guys continue to improve. Kyrie is arguably just about to enter his prime, and will hit it just as the youth core is finally peaking as well. If Lebron wants to be traded because of this, so be it. But for now:

Kyrie (34) Ball (14)
Hart (24) Ball (16) Caruso/Bonga (8)
Kuzma (16) Ingram (32)
Lebron (32) Kuzma (16)
McGee (24) Wagner/#7/#37 (24)

37 helps you move from like 23 to 20, moving down 3 spots that high in the draft would net us more.

[Danny Darko]

#4 carries a 7 million contract, which might be a little problematic actually. hmmmm

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[myersia]

I wonder if another allstar will be available who is disgruntled in the nba. AD isn’t the end all. His injury prone self worries me a little


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[NBAWestFan]

One correction to keeping the #4

If BI & Kuzma, & Hart can be sent and a future #1 not this years for AD then do it
But if that is off the table

If Klay commits then I would be willing to give the #4, BI & Kuzma & Hart.

Lonzo
SG
Klay
LBJ
AD

Sign JJ

[zimpy27]

#4 carries a 7 million contract, which might be a little problematic actually. hmmmm

Read on Twitter

It's fine, you can trade #4 to drop down to around #9, salary difference is $2.5m, meaning you can trade pick 4 for pick 9 and 2020 1st pick.

If all else fails this is a way of stretching out the salaries.

[King_Supreme]

You gotta keep BI and Lo. There’s no guarantee Kawhi comes to LA, so you need that 3rd option, plus Zo can make this team go(defense, ability to play offball and move the ball).

4th pick; Kuzma, Wagner, Bonga, and a top ten 2021 first for AD.

Lakers are really the only team who could trade for AD and get him to sign an extension right now (the Knicks have no stars rn, Boston might see, Kyrie leave).

[tamaraw08]

Lonzo next to a scoring PG is perfect. I hope the Lakers don't overthink and draft another player based on position.
Take the most talented scorer out there.

Last year early in the mock draft, experts predicted Landry Shamet will be picked up by the Lakers. Watched his scouting and highlights and got excited and envisioned him in a Lakers uni, Sixers swooped in and took him before the Lakers got a chance.
Shamet shot 42% from the 3pt area in 79 games. :

[One Love]

Am I the ONLY one that wants to add Klay or Butler instead of trading the young guns... Let’s assume we get Butler or Klay & hang onto our assets... Is Butler/Klay, Kuzz, BI & #4 > AD... Answer is YES...

I am OVER dealing with Pelicans... CP3, AD, etc... We need to flush out who is real between Kyrie, Kawhi, Butler & Klay & lock them up... I think Kyrie goes to Knicks with KD & Kawhi goes to Clipps (own team) so I am good with Butler or Klay...

Plus, #4 pick could be legit... I like TT guard Culver (6’7” hard nosed SG) & Texas big man Hayes (Plays big, gets blocks & boards)... Our defense with Ball (6’6”), Butler (6’7”), LBJ (6’8”) would be sick...

Lakeshow Baby...

[dockingsched]

#4 carries a 7 million contract, which might be a little problematic actually. hmmmm

There’s nothing problematic about the contract. If you trade the pick or the rights to the player before signing the player, it doesn’t count as any salary.

If you trade the player after signing him and waiting the 30 days, the bigger salary helps you in terms of matching salary after you’ve theoretically used up your cap.

Then problem that Reed refers to is trading the pick before using your cap if you want to maintain space for a max free agent, but those problems have very little to do with the salary attached to the #4 pick.

[jay51024]

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26743404/what-happened-wildest-nba-lottery-ever-seen

"The No. 3 pick in this draft plus all of those guys does not carry the same appeal as the No. 4 pick plus Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart and Kyle Kuzma. I'm not sure the two Dallas future first-round picks the Knicks received in the Kristaps Porzingis deal (plus the Knicks youngsters being further from their paydays) tilt the equation in their favor; the Lakers can add their own first-round picks into any Davis package. If the Davis sweepstakes still happens, the Lakers probably come out of the lottery ahead of Knicks."

"Some in the league wonder if the Pelicans' ownership and the New Orleans Saints officials who once had so much influence might still hold some grudge against the Lakers. Maybe. The door is slightly ajar for a surprise Davis suitor beyond the Lakers, Knicks and Celtics. But Gayle Benson has empowered Griffin, and the bet here is that Griffin will push for the best deal -- if a deal happens -- without much regard to the destination."

[tamaraw08]

What about trading down to NO for #7 and #37. Sign 27 yr old kyrie and let the young guys continue to improve. Kyrie is arguably just about to enter his prime, and will hit it just as the youth core is finally peaking as well. If Lebron wants to be traded because of this, so be it. But for now:

Kyrie (34) Ball (14)
Hart (24) Ball (16) Caruso/Bonga (8)
Kuzma (16) Ingram (32)
Lebron (32) Kuzma (16)
McGee (24) Wagner/#7/#37 (24)

I love Kyrie eventho I don't like his baggage/drama and his history of injuries. His ablity to create, shoot etc will solve a lot of spacing problems. I hope and pray that Hart, Kuzma, BI and Ball would vastly improve their perimeter shot but I just don't have a lot of confidence with them esp BI and Ball. I would rather trade the pick and one of the valued youngsters for a proven shooter like Beal.
I like that you included Mcgee there. Not saying he's great but they can have him for cheap so they can use the money for a shooter. Seth Curryh would help too IMO.

[snaquille oatmeal]

#4 carries a 7 million contract, which might be a little problematic actually. hmmmm

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Is there a rule that would prevent us from picking somebody but not signing them till next year? Lol

[milesfides]

It's either keep the pick or Lebron. That simple. Either the Lakers gut the roster and try to assemble a motley crew of whomever is out there willing to play with Lebron, or they have to move Lebron who isn't waiting for any rookie.

If you can trade for Anthony Davis and sign Kawhi, then yes. Both are in their primes and the two best two-way players in the NBA. That team can win a championship.

Other than that (considering Durant is going to NY), what roster can you construct among the lesser talent out there to beat the Warriors? So if AD and Kawhi are off the table, I wouldn't commit to Lebron and his rapidly closing window and overpay for second-tier talent. Why dig yourself a deeper hole? You can't roll with the winners if you have lesser talent.

So I hope the Lakers hold the line. If they can't get AD and Kawhi, they need to be disciplined and cut Lebron loose and develop their existing roster of six players who are all under 24 years old. That's the sensible move.

But I doubt this happens. Rob and Jeannie's backs are against the wall. They, like Lebron, face immense pressure to win now. They will just go down the list until they get the best players available, who won't be good enough.

[TGW]

Laker backup plan

Los Angeles Lakers Get: Bradley Beal, No. 9 pick

Washington Wizards Get: Brandon Ingram, No. 4 pick

If the Lakers don't think they're going to get Davis—whether because New Orleans takes him off the block or because it's clear someone else has the best offer—they should pivot to adding veteran firepower around LeBron James.

For the above deal to work, the Lakers would have to include some salary filler. Let's focus on the overall structure and worry about those details later.

Bradley Beal proved he could run the show with John Wall sidelined last year, and he's precisely the kind of perimeter threat who would thrive alongside James. A career 38.4 percent three-point shooter, Beal would offer high-volume, high-efficiency offense, and it doesn't hurt that he's spent most of his career as a second option.

sigh why is Beal so overvalued in this league. I donr get it

Because he's 25 years old, and averaged 26/5/5. He's better than anyone on the Lakers roster by a large margin (except for Lebron).

Only a Lakers fan would think Ingram and 4 for Beal and 9 is unfair to the Lakers. The Wizards wouldn't even do Ingram and 4 just for Beal alone.

[ROballer]

We're trading the pick, no if's or but's about this.

I called Kyrie+ Davis trade right after the deadline, I want my **** props when it happens.