The Los Angeles Lakers must decide how they want to attack this year’s trade season.
With ample approaches at their disposal, it’s pivotal for the 17-time NBA champions to narrow their focus as soon as possible.
According to a recent trade report involving standout point Luka Doncic, the Lakers have done just that, as the report reveals the organization’s ultimate plan.
“Generally speaking, though, my read on the Lakers' preferences is that they would like to target players in the same age range as stars Luka Doncic (26 years old) and Austin Reaves (27 years old) as they continue building out the roster around them as opposed to surrendering prime trade assets for thirtysomethings," The Stein Line’s Marc Stein wrote reported Sunday.
"It's an approach they leaned on in the offseason when the Lakers split their midlevel exception on Deandre Ayton (27 years old) and Jake LaRavia (24 years old)."
With Anthony Davis being 32 and Giannis Antetokounmpo being 31, it’s safe to say the Lakers won’t go out of their way to acquire either one of the superstar forwards this year.
Contributors like Robert Williams III (28 years old), Herb Jones (27 years old), Trey Murphy III (25 years old), and Daniel Gafford (27 years old) are far more realistic trade targets for Los Angeles, based on their reported wishes.
As long as the Lakers land a player who can complement Doncic well from the get-go, the franchise will likely consider their 2025-26 trade season a success.
Time will tell if Los Angeles actually makes a move before the Feb. 5 deadline.
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