The Los Angeles Lakers have hit a bit of a rough patch lately, having lost their last two games to the San Antonio Spurs and the Milwaukee Bucks. The Lakers currently sit at 23-13 on the season, but their net rating suggests a team that will likely begin to fall off significantly down the stretch of the season unless some changes are made.
Recently, Dan Woike of The Athletic floated a potential trade idea that would see the Lakers reunite with a familiar face.
“I’ve spoken with people around the league about a deal similar to this, with the Lakers sending out expiring money for (Kentavious) Caldwell-Pope, who has a proven past as a postseason difference-maker. At this stage, he’s more solid than anything else, and because of the $21 million player option he has for next season, a team might grab an asset or two if it helps Memphis get off some cash,” he reported.
Caldwell-Pope was a member of the last Lakers championship team in the 2020 season, and has also won a championship with the Denver Nuggets since then.
While he isn't quite the same player that he was back then, Caldwell-Pope is still a decent defender and perimeter shooter who would provide some much-needed versatility to the Lakers on both sides of the ball.
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However, Woike wasn't fully convinced that this trade would work out.
“Unless a deal like this yields a player the Lakers view as a multi-season fit, I don’t think they’d take on money beyond this year. And that stance makes their expiring contracts basically valueless as trade chips this season,” he reported.
Overall, it remains to be seen how committed Rob Pelinka will be to competing for a championship this year versus prioritizing future flexibility to build around Luka Doncic.
The Lakers will next take the floor on Monday evening vs the Sacramento Kings.