2024-25 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

Discussion in 'Lakers Discussion' started by TIME, May 22, 2024.

  1. Kobe Bryant 8

    Kobe Bryant 8 - Lakers 6th Man -

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  2. Weezy

    Weezy Moderator Staff Member

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    Don’t really want to argue this again, but like I said if we can’t be actual contenders I’d rather not be middle of the pack and continue to draft 17th every year, I’d rather be bottom 5 and have a shot at players like Flagg like teams next offseason will. I’m not talking now, because we don’t own our 2025 pick, but we do own our 2026 pick. So if we rebuild next year we’d be bad and have a shot at a high lottery pick, and we could get players and picks for AD. That’s all my point ever was, if we aren’t going to actually try to win with LeBron and AD, just blow it up and get what you can for our star now and do a true rebuild. But again, we won’t do that because it doesn’t sell tickets. I’m not sure what we’ll do, what we have now isn’t enough to trade for a star to put next to AD, so I guess we have to wait until LeBron’s contract expires and clear salary elsewhere to try to sign the next star in free agency to pair with AD. Doesn’t seem super realistic to me, which is again, why I said I’d prefer to start a rebuild and recoup picks and get some young players rather than just stay a mediocre play-in team. I

    I don’t really care about having a superior team to watch than a lottery team if it doesn’t equal titles, it’s fun to a degree because our stars are that good, sure, but just like the Van Exel/Divac/Jones years or led to no rings. But, like I said maybe the Lakers hope to lure another star that way, being mediocre but with AD just like they lured Shaq having some all stars back then but not actually winning anything of note. It’s hard to read a lot of modern players, seems winning isn’t a huge factor for them, they’ll go seemingly anywhere the money is big enough, so who know who the next star who will WANT to be a Laker is.

    Personally I think being mediocre and wasting LeBron’s last years and AD’s prime probably isn’t a good look from the outside, BUT it’s all really the fault of one move, the Westbrook trade, destroyed our title window, cost us a 1st to get him and a 1st to dump him, and that has cost us a chance at a star right now. Rob, LeBron and AD all have to sit with that on, they’re all to blame for signing off on that, so that’s why we’re where we are now. Just hard to believe we couldn’t land a center at all or salary to add one of these free agents that has gone for way below true value, it’s been a fail of an offseason in that regard, not improving at all. And no, sorry players coming back from injury is not improving, they may or may not be healthy still and they maybe may not be good for us, we have no idea.
     
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  3. Pioneer10

    Pioneer10 - Lakers All Star -

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    I think the easiest move would be to move Dlo/JHS/Lewis for Brown. If they had kept Spence I think I would have liked this but now with just Gabe as the PG not sure.
    Throw in some seconds to make it work and TO can take a flier but as noted (and I'm not sure if possible) would be to try to keep the core together including Dlo and add Brown.
     
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  4. Slick2021

    Slick2021 - Lakers MVP -

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    That's what Tinkerbell does.
     
  5. Slick2021

    Slick2021 - Lakers MVP -

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    The issue here is this, if we are to assume, that these reports about us pursuing Grant are accurate, then we should also assume that all these reports, about us trying to move Tinkerbell, are accurate too.

    This means that Rob and JJ, have considered his contributions to the team, and still find him lacking, and want to move in a different direction.

    I don't get why this seems to be soo incredulous around here. We want to win the 4 playoffs series that it takes to win a chip...NOW. They don't believe he's a guy that we can rely on in order to make that happen. Me neither, I've just been saying it since the Conference Finals loss.
     
  6. Slick2021

    Slick2021 - Lakers MVP -

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    When it comes to Grant specifically, allegedly Portland wants two FRP, also allegedly, the Lakers don't want to give up any picks. It's posturing going on, with both sides IMO. If the trade actually happens, the price will be somewhere in the middle. 1 pick, and a swap or two sounds fair to me.
     
  7. Weezy

    Weezy Moderator Staff Member

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    Irwin implied in that last pod that the Lakers told Portland if you don’t want DLo you can just flip him for a first after you get him. Portland said well why don’t you go get a first for him then (and I guess maybe come back to trade for Grant with that extra one?), so yeah, they don’t want him, they have a lot of guards already. But it’s also been pointed out why it’s hard to trade him, he’s too good for tanking teams and not good enough to help make you a contender. We’re stuck with him until the deadline most likely, when his value is as an expiring contract.
     
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  8. LTLakerFan

    LTLakerFan - Lakers Legend -

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    @Weezy
    Yes that’s one way of looking at it. I gave you mine. All in, as you have said yourself giving up picks now for questionable improvement isn’t it. And your way blowing it up early everything has to go right to even get back to where we are next few years. We saw that for 6 years with great draft luck. Personally I’m in no hurry to be there again.
     
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  9. Slick2021

    Slick2021 - Lakers MVP -

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    We aren't blowing up anything, trading for guys still in their prime. Trading young talent, for a veteran on the downside of their career is another thing, I haven't seen any trade proposals for us involving that scenario though.
     
  10. LTLakerFan

    LTLakerFan - Lakers Legend -

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    Oh bull s*** …. you’re overboard on the hater end seriously.
     
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  11. Weezy

    Weezy Moderator Staff Member

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    That’s fine, I understand this position, and we don’t have to agree on our stances. I just don’t want to be middle of the pack, I fear for the day AD is breaking down and we have no real assets to try to rebuild. AD and Reaves are probably the only players we have that could get us first round picks, if we got enough for AD they could be used later to trade for the next star, that’s all I’m saying. If we aren’t going to compete with AD, send him elsewhere to get assets and think about our future. If we don’t and he walks or breaks down we THEN have to hope for draft luck because we do own our ‘26, ‘28, ‘29 & ‘30 draft picks, where if we stockpile firsts we can legit trade for another star.
     
  12. LTLakerFan

    LTLakerFan - Lakers Legend -

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    See I still consider us above middle of the pack as do others here, needing one or two pieces. And of course the LUCK of health same as every other team, if we get those pieces.
     
  13. Helljumper

    Helljumper - Lakers All Star -

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    I’m willing to put stock into sourced information about how trade negotiations have gone, but I don’t think a player’s internal motivation is necessarily something that this type of intel is going to be able to speak definitively to

    I didn’t watch the podcast, but it seems like we’re going through so many layers here. Irwin is hearing this from some guys who cover the Blazers that Grant would like to win more but it’s not the most important thing in the world? Who are these Blazers guys? How close are they truly to the team and Grant? I’d argue that Irwin himself isn’t close enough to the Lakers to be able to speak on the internal private motivations of Lakers players. What makes his friends who cover the Blazers an authority on Grant’s private motivations? Are they actually around the Blazers and Grant all the time? Even if so, a player isn’t going to necessarily be fully transparent about his desires to all media personnel.

    Like even if a Blazers beat reporter who is always at Blazers practices has heard that Grant is content where he’s at, and feel that he’s been going through the motions with the Blazers rather than being dedicated to winning… it would still be a reach IMO to conclude that Grant isn’t motivated to win.

    I think it’s quite plausible that Grant isn’t extremely motivated to win… in his current situation with a dumpster fire franchise that is rebuilding (for which it was reasonable for him to accept the massive contract from regardless of his desire to win). I think it’s a reach to conclude that he wouldn’t prioritize winning in a different environment that is more conducive to winning and comes with those expectations built in

    I would bet that beat reporters around the Wizards a few years ago never got the sense that winning was one of Rui’s primary motivations. But that shouldn’t and didn’t preclude us from trading for him when the value was right. And now that he’s here, he does seem much more motivated to win.

    So I agree with the assessment on trading for Grant. It may not be worth it depending on the Blazers ask for a variety of reasons: mainly his contract, and his skill level/age compared to the package of players we’d have to give up. I just don’t think these reports about “he’s not the most motivated to win” should carry much weight in that evaluation compared to these other factors.
     
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  14. Slick2021

    Slick2021 - Lakers MVP -

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    Where the hell have you been for these last two playoffs? What games were you watching?
     
  15. LTLakerFan

    LTLakerFan - Lakers Legend -

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    I know what going through the motions means vs getting out physicaled or getting cold against the tough Denver defense.
     
  16. LTLakerFan

    LTLakerFan - Lakers Legend -

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    After your defense of Westbrook I question your observational skills or sincerity in debate anyway.
     
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  17. Slick2021

    Slick2021 - Lakers MVP -

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    Tough defense my a**.
    Westbrook ain't here, you can't fall back on that line forever.

    The book on this guy is pretty straight forward. If his shot is falling, he's engaged, sometimes electric. If his shots aren't dropping he disappears and doesn't contribute anything, on either end.

    That's why they are trying to move him.
     
  18. Weezy

    Weezy Moderator Staff Member

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    I don’t think it’s that deep, HJ, but yes I do think that his motivation matters when you’re talking about giving up what we’d be giving up to get him. You just said you didn’t watch the pod as well, so I’m not sure how you can break it down to that degree without actually seeing what was said and how it was said.

    They also made the point that we’d be giving up large contracts/actual rotation players here out or necessity because his contract is so big, it would have to be like at least Rui/Gabe and someone else, they mentioned they had heard Portland even wanted both Rui and Vandi, which is too much IMO. If you’re giving up some of your highest salary players and first round picks (even if it’s only 1) I would think talking to people around the team/league, doing that sort of scouting I guess about how motivated he is to win, how happy he is where he is, I would think those things absolutely matter when bringing someone into this franchise.

    Those are on the margins type stuff that do matter IMO, you don’t want to trade for a guy who is happy where he’s at having the green light and doesn’t want to come in and have to play a role again behind LeBron and AD, team chemistry and fit all have to be taken into account. I get what you’re saying with the Rui comparison and sure these can’t be the only considerations or the deciding factor, but they do have to factor into what you’re willing to give up. The Blazers only gave up 1 first to get him, they gave him a huge contract that runs through his age 34 season, I don’t see how his value goes up taking those things into account, they should be hoping for a protected first at best.
     
  19. LTLakerFan

    LTLakerFan - Lakers Legend -

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    And that’s your fallback now of course he’s not here any more. So what? You were full of crap about him for two years and counting. So your end all debate statements about DLO don’t mean jack … they’re just your overboard hater opinions now that don’t recognize any value he has to this team, which he has. So stuff it with the authoritative opinions. You blew it with Westbrook.
     
  20. Slick2021

    Slick2021 - Lakers MVP -

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