The Los Angeles Lakers exhibited promise during the 2024-25 season.
After frustrating fans with their uninspiring early-season play, the Lakers traded Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks for Luka Doncic on Feb. 2, finished the regular season with 50 wins, and secured a top-5 seed in the playoffs.
However, the Minnesota Timberwolves exposed Los Angeles for its weak frontcourt unit (headlined by Jaxson Hayes and Alex Len), which should motivate the franchise to address that issue this summer.
ClutchPoints’ Bailey Bassett predicts the Lakers will swap Austin Reaves for a two-time All-Star forward.
"(Desmond) Bane went for four first-round picks, a first-round pick swap, Kentavious Caldwell Pope, and Cole Anthony,” Bassett wrote Monday.
"The move brings in an influx of draft capital, two rotation players who can fill Bane's minutes in the backcourt, and some salary relief that could make extending (Ja) Morant and (Jaren) Jackson easier.”
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"Even so, fans will still ponder a Jackson trade, especially in Los Angeles, considering their massive void at the center position. The Lakers added Doncic ahead of the trade deadline in what was one of the biggest trade fleeces ever.”
"The move sent Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks, though, meaning Los Angeles had almost nobody to fill minutes at the five. It hurt them in the playoffs, as the Lakers lacked interior scoring, rebounding, and rim protection.”
"Jackson offers all of that and more. He is a former Defensive Player of the Year winner who has twice led the league in blocks. Jackson's offensive game is improving every season, too.”
Bassett’s trade proposal sends a 2031 first-round pick, Austin Reaves, Dalton Knecht, and Maxi Kleber to the Memphis Grizzlies for Jackson.
While the consensus is that the Grizzlies will retain Jackson after the Bane trade, that shouldn’t stop the Lakers from pursuing the highly touted former lottery pick.
As a non-traditional big man, Jackson can't be placed into a minuscule box.
The Michigan State product can bang in the low post, make long-range jumpers at a 37.5% clip, make himself available as a lob threat in the pick-and-roll, succeed in the mid-range, and block 1.5 shots per contest as an elite interior defender.
Landing Jackson in the offseason could be just what the doctor ordered for the Lakers.
Reaves left a poor taste in Los Angeles’ mouths following a concerning postseason display, making him the perfect headliner in a trade package for Jackson if Memphis changes its stance on the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year.
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