Luka Dončić, LeBron James, and the Los Angeles Lakers have improved to 18-7 on the season, good enough for the third seed in a competitive Western Conference. Their superstars have shown up, Austin Reaves has looked fantastic, and their role players have done exactly what has been asked of them.
Their team looks competitive enough to have a chance at a championship if they stay on this course. The most noticeable flaw in their team has been their point of attack defense, and they could use another go-to scorer off the bench.
Luckily, a team within their division has exactly what they need, and Jack Simone of Lake Show Life drew up the perfect package to acquire them.
“If Sacramento decides to sell, the Lakers could potentially target Malik Monk (a reunion) and Keon Ellis, both of whom would be perfect depth pieces for LA,” Simone said Monday. “Monk’s value to the Lakers is clear, but Ellis would be just as important a piece to LA’s rotation if they were able to land him in a trade. He’s a great defender at the guard spot, meaning the Lakers would have both him and Marcus Smart to deploy against the best wings and guards across the league.”
The Los Angeles Lakers would get Malik Monk and Keon Ellis in exchange for Dalton Knecht, Maxi Kleber, Jarred Vanderbilt, a 2026 first-round pick, and a 2032 second-round pick. Monk is an elite scorer who would take the Lakers to the next level. Ellis has seen his minutes decrease, but he is an elite perimeter defender.
The Kings would do this trade mainly for Knecht and the draft capital, and to free up space in their backcourt. In the rare possibility that Reaves or Dončić aren’t there to handle the ball, that is where Monk becomes extremely valuable. He has even made a career playing off the ball in Sacramento. Ellis takes the defensive pressure off the superstars and makes for versatile lineups.
This proposed trade would help both teams move further in their preferred direction.
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