a center for Luka, a future center for the Lakers

[babyjax13]

There is just no way Ayton returns anything if expiring players are coming back. I could see LA deciding to aggregate their less useful expiring, maybe add a second or cash, and Portland would take that just to get him off the team. I would love Ayton on the Lakers because he'd have to decide to care and we can see what he plays like when motivated, or because he can be pushed out of the league (with life-changing money) for someone who does care. I think the media and fans in LA would destroy him.

That doesn’t seem likely.

Ayton is a backup caliber center making over 30 million and Portland has other options, including a guy they want to develop. Getting Ayton off the team should be a priority, IMO. Very few players in the last decade have been as useless while playing so many minutes.

[JRoy]

There is just no way Ayton returns anything if expiring players are coming back. I could see LA deciding to aggregate their less useful expiring, maybe add a second or cash, and Portland would take that just to get him off the team. I would love Ayton on the Lakers because he'd have to decide to care and we can see what he plays like when motivated, or because he can be pushed out of the league (with life-changing money) for someone who does care. I think the media and fans in LA would destroy him.

That doesn’t seem likely.

Ayton is a backup caliber center making over 30 million and Portland has other options, including a guy they want to develop. Getting Ayton off the team should be a priority, IMO. Very few players in the last decade have been as useless while playing so many minutes.

Ayton is empty calories but he is a starting center and the FO values him more than fans do.

[babyjax13]

That doesn’t seem likely.

Ayton is a backup caliber center making over 30 million and Portland has other options, including a guy they want to develop. Getting Ayton off the team should be a priority, IMO. Very few players in the last decade have been as useless while playing so many minutes.

Ayton is empty calories but he is a starting center and the FO values him more than fans do.

That's fine, I'm just saying if LA goes for him that is all they should offer, and all Portland should expect (from any team). The FO valuing him is obviously a problem, they shouldn't, they should take any asset they can get and play Clingan. They can find a competent backup pretty easily in FA if Robert Williams is traded or cooked by next season.

[JRoy]

Ayton is a backup caliber center making over 30 million and Portland has other options, including a guy they want to develop. Getting Ayton off the team should be a priority, IMO. Very few players in the last decade have been as useless while playing so many minutes.

Ayton is empty calories but he is a starting center and the FO values him more than fans do.

That's fine, I'm just saying if LA goes for him that is all they should offer, and all Portland should expect (from any team). The FO valuing him is obviously a problem, they shouldn't, they should take any asset they can get and play Clingan. They can find a competent backup pretty easily in FA if Robert Williams is traded or cooked by next season.

If that’s all LAL offers they can shop elsewhere.

[zimpy27]

Lakers will offer the TaxMLE to Capela or they will target a C in the draft in the 2nd round.

[taikibansei]

Not sure if I'm understanding this trade, but the Knicks are not trading Robinson just to get our FRP back. Full stop.

We'd need back an above-average rebounder/shot-blocker with some ability on offense at least...or, you know, we might as well just keep Robinson and pray for recovery. (Kind of like what our front office just decided to do.)

[nzahir]

I don't think the Pistons trade Duren for anything the Lakers would realistically offer.

Not even sure that's a hypothetical. They inquired about Duren before moving forward with the Williams trade and those talks ostensibly went nowhere.

I don't view Duren as an untouchable piece, just pretty underwhelmed by the Lakers asset pool.

Is Duren actually a good defender or a name like Mark Williams (a not so great defender)? Advanced metrics seemed bad and his fg% at the rim seemed bad

Would you guys not value Knecht?

Also feel like a stretch big wold be good for you guys

[Snakebites]

I don't think the Pistons trade Duren for anything the Lakers would realistically offer.

Not even sure that's a hypothetical. They inquired about Duren before moving forward with the Williams trade and those talks ostensibly went nowhere.

I don't view Duren as an untouchable piece, just pretty underwhelmed by the Lakers asset pool.

Is Duren actually a good defender or a name like Mark Williams (a not so great defender)? Advanced metrics seemed bad and his fg% at the rim seemed bad

Would you guys not value Knecht?

Also feel like a stretch big wold be good for you guys

His defense isn’t the best, I’ll admit this.

As I said I don’t think he’s untouchable. But he’s younger than Dalton who I don’t view as a starting level player.

It’s really more that I don’t love what LA could offer- they’re pretty asset poor.

Of course we’d love a big who can spread the floor and play defense. Who wouldn’t? Those don’t grow on trees unfortunately.

[tmorgan]

Duren’s defense needs work. He has the physical tools to be a good defender — and he doesn’t seem dumb, so he probably has the mental tools and just needs more experience. But that could be wishful thinking.

What he definitely IS though is a nice list — very good athlete, amazing hands, very good rebounder, good passer, and he’s still 21.

Basically, he’s a project, but a project good enough to start already as long as you have a backup plan when he takes dumb fouls. Which we do.