The talk of the town late into the offseason for the Los Angeles Lakers was all about how they wanted to pursue a two-way swingman to raise the ceiling of the team for this season. They are only weeks away from properly getting their opportunity to pursue that upgrade.
Dec. 15 marks the date when many of the offseason signings from this past free agency period will have their trade restrictions lifted. As a result, instead of teams having access to specific salaries and players to use in negotiations, the vast majority of the roster will be available.
Naturally, that is going to make trade talks a whole lot easier as teams gear up their plans ahead of the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 5. For the Lakers, it feels like a given they will be involved in the antics that occur before that date to some capacity.
Rob Pelinka will still need a better sample size for how Los Angeles performs with LeBron James back in the mix. However, a hot start and a group hungry to knock at the door of championship contention will almost certainly seek every advantage they can get before the 2026 NBA Playoffs.
Two-way wing continues to stand out as a pressing need for the Lakers
JJ Redick rolled out LeBron with Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Deandre Ayton, and Rui Hachimura as the starters for the first game back in the lineup involving the aging superstar. That group continues to lack a defensive centerpiece to build the gameplan around on that end.
Some will continue to vouch for Marcus Smart being elevated to that group to help solve that problem. The injury history of the former Defensive Player of the Year may just weigh too heavily on the mind of the Lakers to pull the trigger on that move.
If that continues to be the case, the Lakers will have to put out their feelers on who may be available externally to come in and help the team. There are just a few important caveats to consider.
A player like Hachimura may have stood out as a potential trade asset, given his expiring contract, before the season started. His shooting and smooth fit with Doncic has quickly made keeping him a necessity for the Lakers.
Leaning on the other expiring contracts, Dalton Knecht, and the draft capital that is available should be route taken to secure an upgrade. It will not be an easy ask for Pelinka to turn that into a legitimate starting caliber wing. However, it is the reality that awaits the Lakers president.