Nick Young (Photo : NBAE via Getty Images)
The Los Angeles Lakers could explore trading Nick Young to acquire key players after the team failed to lure top free agents available in free agency.
The Lakers are still an unattractive destination for top free agents, despite having plenty of money to spend and a core of young promising talents to lure players. The team's only major signings were a pair of veterans in Luol Deng and Timofey Mozgov, who are unlikely to boost the Lakers as title contenders if they intend to become so next season.
But regardless of the Lakers' agenda for the 2016-2017 season, it still seems they plan on exploring the trade market, particularly for Nick Young, who could be "traded or waived" this offseason, according to Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times.
With the lack of significant acquisitions this summer, there is a growing sense the Lakers could choose to trade Young instead of waiving him, although what exactly the Lakers could get in return for Young remains to be seen.
Nevertheless, there are probably teams willing to add an outside threat for a right price. One potential landing spot the Lakers could consider for Young is the Charlotte Hornets.
The Hornets have lost Courtney Lee to free agency, with the shooting guard opting to join the New York Knicks. Despite having a short stint with the Hornets last season, Lee played an essential role in the team's backcourt area and helped Charlotte in securing a playoff berth.
The Hornets are only left with Troy Daniels and Jeremy Lamb as the team's options at the two guard position. Adding Young, however, would address the need for another shooter to complement Nicolas Batum and Kemba Walker.
ESPN's trade machine approved a deal of Cody Zeller for Young, which is considered as an equal swap in terms of the players' salary.
The deal could also make sense for the Lakers, who are lacking a quality backup big for Mozgov. Zeller, who averaged a career-best 8.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game for the Hornets last season, could fit the young squad of LA, although the Hornets are unlikely to deal him with Al Jefferson joining the Indiana Pacers.
Another possible landing spot for Swaggy P is the Philadelphia 76ers, who could also be in the hunt for quality shooters to surround Ben Simmons.
Noel has been linked to several trade rumors, and while the 76ers have yet to officially confirm the availability of the 22-year-old center, there is a chance Philly trades him or Jahlil Okafor this offseason for any added talents.
The 76ers are expected to utilize the full potential of Simmons, which means they need to surround the Aussie playmaker with knockdown shooters. Young, despite spending most of his time coming off the bench for the Lakers last season, he could still be an offensive threat beyond the arc, especially if given ample time on the court. Young would surely space the floor for the 76ers and could serve as a nice backup for Nik Stauskas.
Noel, on the other hand, would give the Lakers a defensive big man to compensate for the team's lack of interior defense. Adding Noel would create a lethal combination of young players whom the Lakers could develop over the next few years.
A straight up trade of Young for Noel works in ESPN's trade machine, but if such deal materializes, it would likely involve other tradable pieces.
The Lakers could really be interested in giving Young a new home, especially after all the off-court issues he had from D'Angelo Russell's controversial video recording to Young's Fourth of July fireworks accident. While there is not much of a value in trading Young, the Lakers need all the help they could get to turn things around in Tinsel town next season.
