The Los Angeles Lakers have gotten off to an encouraging 10-4 season start, all without 21-time All-NBA superstar power forward LeBron James.
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After all, the Lakers got absolutely walloped by the Oklahoma City Thunder on both ends of the hardwood Wednesday, and though they recovered nicely with back-to-back wins against the New Orleans Pelicans and Milwaukee Bucks on Friday and Saturday, they seem to have a clear weakness against athleticism.
Perhaps they could use some scoring help.
Should Los Angeles trade for a beloved LA son?
ClutchPoints' Rohan Brahmbhatt submits that the Lakers trade for six-time All-Star Sacramento Kings small forward DeMar DeRozan, a Los Angeles native and USC alum.
Already sporting a miserable 3-11 record on the young season, the Kings appear utterly disjointed. Sacramento boasts a roster with four former multi-time All-Stars in DeRozan, three-time All-Star center Domantas Sabonis, two-time All-Star shooting guard Zach LaVine, and nine-time All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook.
Sacramento has saddled itself with an utterly unathletic, aging roster. Most of its core players are defensive sieves. The team has no hope, and would be best served offloading its top vets for draft equity.
“It almost feels too perfect, but the Lakers are undeniably the most logical destination for DeMar DeRozan,” Brahmbhatt wrote. “He would instantly become the Lakers’ second-most reliable perimeter scorer, providing the exact shot-making they’ve lacked for three straight postseasons. His ability to steady non-LeBron minutes is invaluable, and he could lead second units the way DeRozan once did in Chicago and Toronto.”
The 36-year-old has taken a step back from his peak days as a scorer with the Toronto Raptors and Chicago Bulls, but remains a useful midrange marksman and efficient free throw shooter.
In 13 healthy games this season, the 6-foot-6 swingman has been averaging 18.2 points on.475/.375/.847 shooting splits, 3.5 assists and 3.4 boards a night.
Adding DeRozan doesn't make a ton of sense for the Lakers. Los Angeles needs to add more perimeter defense, not a fourth ball-dominant scorer behind incumbent stars Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and LeBron James.
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