Rumor: Lakers to hunt third star this summer, Trae Young is on the short list

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Los Angeles Lakers v Atlanta Hawks

The Lakers hung a banner in 2020 with two elite stars — LeBron James and Anthony Davis — surrounded by quality defenders and shooters as role players. However, the sense was that as LeBron aged they needed another star and shot creator to take some of the load off, but they misfired on Russell Westbrook in that role. This season, the Lakers have gone back to more of the 2020 model, but the shooting and play around LeBron and AD have not been consistent (partly due to injuries), and they sit ninth in the West. This team is not a title contender.

This summer, expect the Lakers to go big game hunting again — and Trae Young might be at the top of the list, Jovan Buha of The Athletic said in a Q&A (hat tip Jesse Cinquini at Lakers Daily).

“Yes, they are [going after a third star]. And I can confirm that from multiple sources. They are going third-star hunting this offseason. And we’ll see how that affects the D-Lo (D’Angelo Russell) situation. We’ll see how — you probably have to give up Austin [Reaves] in almost any…third-star trade.

“… Now, who’s available? The one name I continually hear is Trae Young. He’s been to Laker playoff games before. He’s a Klutch Sports client. That’s probably the most realistic one right now. What happens with Dallas and Kyrie [Irving]? Do they flame out? Do they lose in the play-in? Do they lose in round one? Does Dallas ultimately break that up? And then what’s the market for Kyrie?”

Dallas has been thriving since the trade deadline after adding Daniel Gafford on the front line to solidify their defense, and by all accounts Kyrie Irving is happy with the situation with the Mavericks. This team is hot going into the playoffs and seems far more primed for a deep postseason run than breaking things up. As Buha later notes, a lot of teams around the league have their eye on Donovan Mitchell, and what happens in Cleveland. The Cavaliers are expected to offer Mitchell a max $200.4 million, four-year contract extension this summer and league sources have told NBC Sports most teams expect he will sign it. Even if he does not, forcing the Cavaliers…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/rumor-lakers-hunt-third-star-155556065.html

Author : NBC Sports

Publish date : 2024-03-31 15:55:56

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