The Los Angeles Lakers may need to acquire a star to become great again, and among those the team could consider are Indiana Pacers' Paul George and Golden State Warriors' Klay Thompson.
The Lakers are, so far, coping up with the retirement of Kobe Bryant as the team are off to an impressive start early in the season. Luke Walton's schemes have changed the team's culture back to enjoying and winning games, showing good signs that the franchise is ready to return to its greatness.
The team's core of young talents in Brandon Ingram, D'Angelo Russell, Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson have shown promising displays under Walton's tutelage, and all of which could take over as the face of the 16-time NBA champs. But according to Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report, the Lakers still need a proven star to become great again.
"Assuming the Lakers don't fall back into the desperation-fueled trap of chasing stars and make a bad trade just to get a little better sooner-bear in mind executive vice president Jim Buss put his job on the line by promising contention by the end of this season-the Lakers will be good again. Maybe even great," Ding wrote.
"Yes, perhaps the latter will require something such as a Paul George signing in 2018 or Klay Thompson signing in 2019, but the Lakers have learned the hard way that free agents want to join something that has already been built to win."
George and Thompson are two of the best players in the league in their own specialties. George is arguably the best two-way premiere wing in the league, while Thompson is considered as one of the best shooters to ever play the game.
Both would help speed up the Lakers' return to title contention, and would give Los Angeles a proven star to take over the Purple and Gold franchise. But would the Lakers ever have a chance to woo one of the mentioned players?
George will have a chance to explore free agency if Indiana fails to convince the 26-year-old forward on an extension. George growing up idolizing Kobe Bryant and playing college basketball at Fresno State could pay a factor for the Pacers star to join the Lakers, considering Los Angeles can continue competing at a high level.
Likewise, Thompson, also a California native, could be linked to the Lakers if he opts to explore free agency in the summer of 2019. With Walton running the Lakers' coaching staff, there is a chance he could play as a recruiter in luring Thompson to play for Tinsel town.
There is so much to speculate at this point, but such possibilities would only exist if the Lakers could become a playoff team in the next three years and if the Pacers and Warriors decide let go of their prized stars. Until then, fans can only hope the Lakers exceed expectations.
Video courtesy: YouTube/FreeDawkins