RealGM

Marc Stein, ESPN Senior Writer

The Los Angeles Lakers have emerged as one of the most determined trade suitors for Sacramento Kings All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins, according to league sources.

Sources told ESPN that the Lakers have been actively pursuing trade scenarios in recent weeks in attempt to construct a deal that would convince the Kings to part with Cousins.

The Kings, though, continue to insist that Cousins is not available. The team's new lead decision-maker, Vlade Divac, told the Sacramento Bee in Sunday's editions that dealing away his best player "is not happening."

Sources say that the Lakers, Kings and Orlando Magic have had exploratory dialogue on a three-way Cousins trade that would land the 24-year-old in Los Angeles. All three teams hold top-6 picks in Thursday's NBA draft, and Orlando has a young top-flight center of its own in Nikola Vucevic, who could theoretically fill the Cousins void.

Yet since assuming control of the Kings' front office in April, Divac repeatedly has downplayed the idea of parting with Cousins, who has three seasons left on an extension he signed during the summer of 2013.

The Lakers would appear to have limited assets to get into the trade sweepstakes for Cousins -- in the event that Sacramento's stance changes -- beyond surrendering prized young big man Julius Randle and/or the No. 2 overall pick in Thursday's draft.

Orlando holds the fifth pick in the draft but would presumably expect a lot to be willing to part with Vucevic, who signed an extension of his own last October and has become the most consistently productive player from the four-team blockbuster trade in August 2012 that sent Dwight Howard from the Magic to the Lakers.

Divac, though, told the Bee in the recent interview that his preference is to "do something, a small move, before the draft."

"We have a lot of changes to make," said Divac, whose Kings hold the sixth overall pick Thursday night. "The league is much more up-tempo now and we need more 3-point shooting. If we don't get that in the draft, we'll be active in free agency and see about making trades later in the offseason."

ESPN reported in May after the Boston Celtics' first-round elimination that the Celtics planned to be at the front of the line in terms of trying to trade for Cousins this offseason.

The Denver Nuggets have also been increasingly mentioned as a likely trade suitor for him since the hiring of former Kings coach and Cousins favorite Mike Malone as their new coach. But Denver wouldn't appear to have the sort of trade assets to rival Boston's cache of future first-round picks, which tend to become especially handy when trying to assemble multi-team trades.

As the draft week kicks off the big name on the trading rumor block is Kings big man, Demarcus Cousins. The Celtics have been on a ton of those rumors, but now the Lakers are starting to jump into that pond. New Kings VP Vlade Divac says the Sacramento franchise isn’t going to trade their All-Star center.

From the Sacramento Bee‘s Ailene Voisin:

“That is not happening,” Divac said forcefully, “but I would love to do something, a smaller move, before the draft. We have a lot of changes to make. The league is much more up-tempo now, and we need more three-point shooting. If we don’t get that in the draft, we’ll be active in free agency and see about making trades later in the offseason.

Now the rumor that hit today was that the Lake Show was looking to do a 3 team swap for Cousins that would include the Orlando Magic and big man, Nikola Vucevic.

Would the Lakers want to put this years #2 pick on the line for Cousins AND last years first round pick, Julius Randle? That seems like an awful like to throw in for Cousins considering his mental state doesn’t seem to always be 100%, or to put it mildly, he is considered a head case by most.

Kilroy wrote:I think Ok4 will be better than Cousins, in less time than it took Cousins to pull his head out of his ass... Honestly not sure why everyone is so enamored with cousins.

dockingsched wrote:Personally I want the lakers to have nothing to do with Cousins

With that in mind it'll take #2, Randle and some change

Lakers get Cousins
Magic get #6, #27
Kings get #2, Randle, Vucevic

Kilroy wrote:I think Ok4 will be better than Cousins, in less time than it took Cousins to pull his head out of his ass... Honestly not sure why everyone is so enamored with cousins.

Kilroy wrote:

dockingsched wrote:Personally I want the lakers to have nothing to do with Cousins

With that in mind it'll take #2, Randle and some change

Lakers get Cousins
Magic get #6, #27
Kings get #2, Randle, Vucevic

I agree, which is essentially going all-in for a guy that is at best, a 3rd option and leaving yourself with very little to build around him with...

We be watching "Cousins and Crap" for the forseeable future. Which is basically a double-negative.

Spanish_Laker wrote:If somehow we could acquire DeMarcus Cousins without losing the pick and then picking up DeAngelo Russell would be excellent. Maybe Randle + Clarkson would be enough to get him.

Kilroy wrote:I think Ok4 will be better than Cousins, in less time than it took Cousins to pull his head out of his ass... Honestly not sure why everyone is so enamored with cousins.

Indy2LA wrote:Nooooooooooo!

Jahlil Okafor > DeMarcus Cousins and it's not even close.

Would you trade a 19 year old Tim Duncan for DeMarcus Cousins?

lakesh0w wrote:This is interesting though.. we get Cousins & the 6th pick..

[tweet]https://twitter.com/Probballdraft/status/613097390527025152[/tweet]

So potentially a front court have Winslow, Randle, Cousins..