The Los Angeles Lakers do not seem interested in fielding offers for their core of young talents, but veterans Lou Williams and Luol Deng could be available before the trade deadline.
The Lakers may not entertain any trade negotiations involving the team's young talents in Brandon Ingram, D'Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randle. Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak admitted to Spectrum SportsNet's Mike Bresnahan that the team isn't looking to be active on the trade market, insisting that "it's unlikely" Los Angeles makes a move before the February 23 trade deadline.
"It's actually a little active now and I know you read about it. You'll see some names of players. You haven't seen names of our players. We're not actively trying to do something. I would guess that we would not end up doing anything," Kupchak wrote.
While the Lakers do not appear to be major players in the market, the team still have plenty of tradable assets on their roster outside of LA's young talents. Veterans like Lou Williams and Luol Deng could draw interests from contending teams and may turn out as trade chips for the Lakers prior to the deadline.
James Herbert of CBS Sports believes Williams could be on the trading block, despite being one of the Lakers' most consistent scorers, averaging a career-best 18.1 points per game on 43.8 percent shooting from the field, including 37.6 percent from beyond the arc.
"If contending teams are willing to part with real assets, the Lakers might have to part with him, especially if the front office decides it would like a better chance of keeping its top-3 protected first-round pick," Herbert wrote.
Los Angeles still has a chance to break into the top eight if the team could continue their winning ways for the remainder of the season. Moreover, if they have a real shot at making it into the postseason, Williams should be no doubt a keeper for the Lakers.
Meanwhile, Deng's availability may be connected to the Lakers creating enough cap space for a free agent star, according to Brett Pollakoff of Fox Sports.
"A star free agent will like what he sees in Los Angeles at some point, and the Lakers need to rid themselves of Deng's deal to create enough cap space to land multiple max-level players when that time eventually comes," Polakoff wrote.
Deng signed a four-year $72 million contract with the Lakers this past summer, which for many fans was a disappointing move during the offseason. The 31-year-old forward is only averaging 8.2 points per game on a career-low shooting of 39.7 percent from the field.
The Minnesota Timberwolves have been linked as one of the teams interested in Deng, but it still remains to be seen whether the Lakers would entertain offers for the veteran wing.
The Lakers seem pleased where the franchise is heading, and the mix of young guns and veterans the team currently has. But if there are enticing offers on the table, expect the Lakers to consider moving the likes of Deng and Williams.
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