LeBron James, Marcus Smart, and the Los Angeles Lakers have had an up-and-down couple of weeks as they navigate injury woes and a tougher schedule. After starting the season 23-11, the Lakers have lost six of their last nine games. For whatever reason, the struggles have coincided with the NBA trade deadline fast approaching.
As the team continues tis Grammy road trip in the mid-west, the Lakers are hopeful they can put all the trade talks behind them and get back on the winning track.
“I mean it is tough,” Marcus Smart said after the loss. “You've got guys fighting for contracts, fighting to stay on the team. And then you've got other guys who are secure and kind of understand where they are. So it is a little tough and it does make things a little bit harder, but at the same time, we are professionals and we've got to come out and do our job no matter what. The human element does come into play at times, but you just have to be able to snap out of it quicker when it does.”
LeBron James took a different approach, putting emphasis on the Lakers biggest missing piece right now: potential NBA All-Star Austin Reaves.
“I mean, we're missing our all-star two guard, James said. “So we haven't been whole pretty much all year. We're staring to get a little rhythm, we're starting to get full, but we haven't had a full roster all year pretty much. Our All-Star two-guard has been out, hopefully we can get him back soon. I saw another report that possibly he may come back during the road trip.
“I don't really get involved into all of that. it's disrespectful to these guys if I start talking about the trade deadline and what we need to do and what we've got to get better at, whatever the case may be. I'm trying not to play fantasy basketball too much.”
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Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, Maxi Kleber, and Jaxson Hayes are all slated to be unrestricted free agents in the summer of 2026. LeBron James, Austin Reaves, Deandre Ayton, and Marcus Smart all have player options that can be exercised for the 2026-27 season or declined to hit unrestricted free agency this summer.
“For sure, that affects things with us, Hachimura said. “Especially this year, we have a lot of guys like that, including myself. I've been here for four seasons now, and every year, it's kind of the same. A little different, but we re-sign me, Austin [Reaves], [Jarred Vanderbilt]. It was a little different this year, because a lot of new guys are here now and they're basically on one year contracts and they have to survive too. I get it, I understand it. But we talked about it before the season: Winning is going to help.”
When asked about his potential future, LeBron James repeated the same line three times with a smile.
“I'm good, I'm good. I'm good.”
T he NBA trade deadline is February 5th, and the Lakers have just under two weeks to try and find moves that help their roster. The team is limited, however, with the draft assets they have available to them — a 2031 first round pick — and players who aren't highly coveted in the current trade market.