Who are the Los Angeles Lakers? We all know them to be the 17-time NBA champions and one of the most historic professional sports organizations in the United States due to their rich culture with legends such as Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jerry West, and others. But the question of “Who are the Lakers?” is very relevant right now given the fact that this franchise has seemed to stumble in recent years with LeBron James and Anthony Davis running the show.

Nobody can take away the championship these All-Star duo brought to Los Angeles in 2020. No matter the circumstances of the league shutting down and resuming playing the NBA Bubble due to the pandemic, this is still the Lakers’ most recent championship. However, this organization has gone just 2-3 in playoff series since 2020, losing in the first round two of the last four seasons. The Lakers even missed the playoffs altogether in 2022.

A trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2023 has been all forgotten by those who idolize this franchise, especially with Darvin Ham being fired after going 90-74 in two seasons and winning the very first NBA In-Season Tournament last year. Winning is expected in Los Angeles, and with LeBron not getting any younger, the sense of urgency to win and compete for another title right now is as high as it can be. JJ Redick is now the head coach of the team given his analytical approach and relationship with James, but much of the same remains for the Lakers.

In fact, Rob Pelinka and his front office didn’t really make any moves this offseason. James, who was willing to take a paycut in order for the team to pursue key names in free agency, ended up accepting a two-year, $101.3 million contract that he can opt out of next summer to do much of the same pertaining to the team attempting to lure key free agents. The Lakers also brought back Max Christie, who has played all that much early in his career, on a four-year, $32 million contract where he is expected to see an expanded role moving forward.

That’s it. Those two signings ended up being the only moves the Lakers made this offseason, despite being linked to several All-Star talents in trade rumors. Trae Young, Donovan Mitchell, and Jimmy Butler all popped up as potential trade targets for the Lakers, yet no deals ever materialized for Los Angeles. So, what are the Lakers’ options at this point with training camp right around the corner?

If there is one thing that is known around the NBA, it is that Pelinka and this front office are always searching for ways to improve their immediate outlook. The Lakers don’t have any cap space or roster room to make a late free agency addition, but there are several players on the trade market that could instantly improve their chances of being successful during the 2024-25 season.

Will the Lakers ultimately make a trade before training camp? If Los Angeles does pull off a trade, it will likely be for one of these players.

Jerami Grant – Portland Trail Blazers

At some point, it seems plausible to believe that the Portland Trail Blazers will look to move Jerami Grant. The veteran forward is now 30 years old and doesn’t necessarily fit the timeline that the Blazers have built for themselves with Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, and now first-round pick Donovan Clingan.

Grant is the epitome of the type of player the Lakers desperately need. He can play either the small forward or power forward position, and Grant is a very versatile two-way player on the wing. Not only could the 10-year veteran be a primary defensive option for the Lakers, but his secondary scoring abilities would take a lot of pressure off of James and Davis to have to do everything for the Lakers offensively.

The problem with pursuing Grant is that the Blazers haven’t actively been looking to trade him this offseason, despite several teams, including the Lakers, showing interest in him. This season, Grant is set to make $29.7 million, and he still has several more years on his contract.

Although Grant is an ideal talent to pair with James and Davis, the weight of his contract may be too much for the Lakers to take on considering that they are just $45,001 under the second apron tax line. Essentially, the Lakers would have to match Grant’s salary perfectly in a trade, which would be hard to do since the Blazers would hold zero interest in D’Angelo Russell.

Any scenario to land Grant would likely involve Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, and either Christian Wood or Cam Reddish, but none of these players truly benefit Portland in any way. This now leads to the Lakers having to find a third and fourth team to potentially facilitate the trade, which would be near impossible this close to training camp. Aside from figuring out the logistics of making the money work this season, the Lakers would be very pressed for cap space and tax relief moving forward if they were to add Grant.

The idea is appealing to the Lakers, but it is hard to imagine that a deal involving Grant will come to fruition right now.

Among many teams, the Lakers have shown interest in Brooklyn Nets forward Cam Johnson this summer, league sources told ClutchPoints. With the Nets taking things in a different direction after trading Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks, Johnson appears to be the next player that the organization will look to leverage for future assets.

In a total of five seasons with the Phoenix Suns and Nets, Johnson has averaged 11.7 points and 3.9 rebounds per game while shooting 39.2 percent from three-point range. Last season in Brooklyn, Johnson averaged 13.4 points per game on 39.1 percent shooting from deep.

Throughout his career, Johnson has always been a really strong spot shooter from anywhere beyond the three-point line. If there is one thing the Lakers have been lacking next to their two stars, it is true perimeter threats that can consistently put pressure on opposing teams. The Lakers as a whole ranked inside the top 10 in three-point shooting percentage last season, but this is still a need that the franchise has.

As far as what acquiring Johnson could look like, the Lakers actually have a path to potentially putting together an enticing offer since returning Russell to Brooklyn makes sense. With the Nets taking a step back and rebuilding, Russell would instantly be a veteran leader at the point guard position for this team. Along with Russell, the Lakers could send both Wood and Reddish to the Nets as well, which keeps them below the second apron while adding Johnson.

The question is whether or not the Lakers have the draft assets that the Nets are searching for in trade talks this offseason. Los Angeles can’t trade a first-round pick until 2029 at the earliest, and it is unknown if Pelinka would want to sacrifice what could wind up being a valuable asset in the post-LeBron era. The Nets have been asking for multiple draft picks in proposals for Johnson, leading to the belief that the Lakers may not have the capability to pull off this type of trade.

Kyle Kuzma – Washington Wizards

Now this would be a very interesting move for the Lakers to make. Kyle Kuzma was traded from Los Angeles to the Washington Wizards in 2021 when the Lakers brought in Russell Westbrook. That experiment blew up in Pelinka’s face, as Kuzma has thrived as the top option in Washington, not having to always hide in the shadows of James and Davis.

Kuzma has been on the Wizards’ trade block since the trade deadline, yet the organization is not actively looking to trade him. Instead, since Washington is rebuilding, their front office is allowing rival teams to inquire about any player other than their recent draft picks. While Kuzma has drawn interest on the trade market, the Wizards have maintained a level of hesitation.

Then again, the team was ready to ship the forward to the Dallas Mavericks last season before he asked not to be traded. It is also worth mentioning that the Sacramento Kings heavily pursued Kuzma ahead of the 2024 NBA Draft before talks stalled over the draft assets the Kings were offering.

The Wizards are rebuilding and looking for future draft picks in any trade they make. For Kuzma, the asking price has been set at multiple first-round picks for quite some time. That asking price has not declined this offseason amid teams continuing to show interest in Kuzma.

Perhaps the biggest assessment here regarding the Lakers possibly exploring the idea of bringing back Kuzma is the fact that he very unlikely wants to play with Davis and James again. With the Lakers, Kuzma was put into a box and had to play a catch-and-shoot role on the perimeter. Since joining the Wizards, Kuzma has showcased his full offensive repertoire and has proven that he can be a focal point for a team. Unfortunately, that is not the role he held in Los Angeles, and it isn’t the role he would hold upon possibly returning.

This is certainly a long-shot scenario. Nonetheless, Kuzma remains on the trade block and will hear his name in rumors once again leading up to the 2025 trade deadline.

Bruce Brown – Toronto Raptors

Another player that the Lakers have shown interest in dating back to last season is Bruce Brown. After winning a championship with the Denver Nuggets in 2023, Brown signed with the Indiana Pacers last summer. His time with the Pacers didn’t even last a full season, as Brown was traded to the Toronto Raptors ahead of the trade deadline in the deal that sent Pascal Siakam to Indiana.

Now, Brown is once again on the trade block since he is in the final year of his contract and set to make $23 million.

Due to his versatility and ability to play on both sides of the court, Brown is certainly an attractive player for many contending teams in the league. Whether or not certain teams can afford him and sacrifice assets to possibly grab him for a one-year rental is a completely separate conversation.

The Lakers are one of the teams that should be interested in a one-year rental of Brown for a couple of reasons. Not only would he be the “glue guy” that this team doesn’t have right now in the second unit, but Brown’s expiring contract immediately presents a path to the Lakers possibly working their way under the first tax apron for the 2025-26 season.

If the Lakers were to seriously pursue Brown between now and the start of the 2024-25 season, they would undoubtedly need to include Hachimura in trade discussions with the Raptors due to the fact that he is only 26 years old and presents upside as a scorer at the power forward position next to Scottie Barnes. Last offseason, the Raptors did show interest in Gabe Vincent, sources said. It is unknown at this time if the Raptors would still be interested in Vincent after trading for and extending Immanuel Quickley.

From the Lakers point of view, Brown would be the ideal type of player to target due to the fact that he is in the final year of his contract and can wear multiple hats next to James and Davis.

Nikola Vucevic – Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls have once again hit the reset button. DeMar DeRozan, who was once a target of the Lakers, is now a member of the Sacramento Kings, and the Bulls also traded Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder this offseason. In doing so, Josh Giddey is now the focal point in Chicago’s backcourt alongside Coby White.

What direction the Bulls go from here is very unknown, especially with Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic still hanging around. In Vucevic’s case, he is now 33 years old and will turn 34 in October. The veteran center has two more years left on his contract and will make $20 million during the 2024-25 season.

Although there are other positions that the Lakers would rather fill, pursuing a trade for Vucevic may not be a terrible idea. Davis always tends to play better alongside other big men, and Los Angeles has always preferred having their All-Star at the power forward position. One of the main reasons why the Lakers were fierce title contenders in 2020 was because they rolled out a two-big lineup with either Dwight Howard or JaVale McGee next to Davis in the frontcourt.

Not only would Vucevic give the Lakers another strong rebounding presence, but he is the perimeter shooter that they need to stretch the court and open up space for LeBron. After all, going out and getting Vucevic also makes sense in terms of pairing him with Russell as far as pick-and-roll sets go. Both players are real shooting threats, which makes the Lakers’ offense much better than it is.

The best part about pursuing Vucevic from the Lakers’ perspective is that they wouldn’t need to break the bank to acquire him. Chicago isn’t going to be getting first-round picks for the veteran center, so Los Angeles could potentially get him at a discounted rate of Rui Hachimura and Christie Wood.

Overall, the Lakers upgrade their frontcourt and scoring depth while also remaining below the second apron tax line. Attach two second-round picks to a deal that includes both Wood and Hachimura, and all of a sudden, you have yourself a deal that the Bulls would likely accept.

Jordan Clarkson – Utah Jazz

What are the Utah Jazz planning to do? After finishing 31-51 during the 2023-24 season, the Jazz had high hopes that they would be able to pull off a big move this offseason in order to get back to playoff-contending status. Well, Lauri Markkanen restructured and extended his contract to remain in Utah, but that was all the organization did.

The Jazz don’t appear to be in an immediate position to compete for a playoff spot, which is why it is inevitable that they will be making some changes to their roster by way of trade. John Collins is on the trade block, and Collin Sexton has also heard his name mentioned in rumors, some of which have been connected to the Lakers.

Jordan Clarkson is another name that is going to be on the trade block given that he is the oldest guard in Utah’s locker room and on a favorable contract. The 32-year-old has two more years and $28.3 million remaining on his contract and is still an impactful sixth-man talent. In 55 games last year, Clarkson averaged 17.1 points and 5.0 assists per game while shooting 41.3 percent from the floor.

If anything has become clear for the Lakers, it is that they need impactful weapons on their bench. More importantly, Los Angeles needs to add players with playoff experience that are geared for a deep postseason run. After all, those are the types of players the Lakers had in 2020 when they won a championship in the NBA Bubble.

Clarkson has experience playing with LeBron in the past when they were both with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and he could help lead the Lakers’ second unit alongside Austin Reaves. Whether or not the Lakers could even offer anything the Jazz would want is a completely different question.

Any trade that Los Angeles would look to make with Utah would certainly involve at least one other team due to Hachimura and/or Gabe Vincent likely being on the move — two players the Jazz would hold zero interest in.

As far as bench scoring and extra depth in the backcourt goes, Clarkson is certainly an option on the trade market for the Lakers and any other team that would be looking for a veteran scoring guard.