Lakers Advised to Trade $30 Million Forward in Offseason

The Los Angeles Lakers have to get out of the misery they put themselves into last offseason. General manager Rob Pelinka put together a nice team, but things didn’t work at all. Russell Westbrook joined the team through a big trade, but he is not a good fit for the team at all. The Lakers didn’t even do an attempt to trade him earlier in the regular season. According to several sources, the Lakers should pull out a big trade this offseason.

Jake Fischer from Bleacher Report reported that the Lakers and Russ want to cut ties sooner than expected.

Robbie Stratakos of Sportscasting says the Lakers should trade Talen Horton-Tucker, too.

“It doesn’t make sense for the Lakers to have Horton-Tucker on a $10 million average annual salary if he’s not going to produce at a considerable and effective level,” Stratakos wrote. “All that said, the Lakers should be able to get teams to inquire about a trade for the young wing. Why? Horton-Tucker has exhibited an ability to score off the dribble, create his own shot, and is still 21. Maybe another team can tap into his potential? LA should be able to get a young player on a rookie deal and a second-rounder or perhaps a future first-rounder on its own for Horton-Tucker.”

Lakers to trade THT in the offseason

The Lakers did their best to keep THT on the roster. However, he struggled with inconsistency and now may be the perfect time to get rid of him.

A Western Conference executive talked to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report. He said that the Lakers will have a hard time trading THT.

“He may be great in four or five years, but he’s not right now,” the exec told Pincus. “If we trade for him and he blows up, he’ll just opt out and hit free agency in 2023. We’d have no control over his contract.”

Pincus has already talked about Horton-Tucker. According to his report, NBA teams viewed THT as a “marginal asset.”

“Now that the Lakers are looking to improve their roster ahead of the trade deadline, Horton-Tucker is viewed by other teams as a marginal asset,” Pincus wrote in January. “He’s still a developing prospect, but he’s about $7.7 million more expensive this season than his contemporaries. But the bigger issue for the Lakers, above his salary, is the 21-year-old guard’s player option before the 2023-24 season.”