Milwaukee Bucks shooting guard O.J. Mayo (#00) shoots over the Cleveland Cavaliers in a recent regular season game. (Photo : Getty Images)
After Kobe Bryant announced that he is retiring at the end of this season, a lot of Los Angeles Lakers rumors have emerged on how the team is going to prepare itself for that inevitability. One of the rumors arising right now is a potential trade with Milwaukee for the services of shooting guard O.J. Mayo.
Lakers Nation have actually reported this speculation even before this year's NBA draft, saying that Mayo is a "potential trade target for L.A." this season. But now with Kobe's impending departure, the speculation may actually become true.
The 28-year-old 2009 All-Rookie First Teamer will certainly not replace Bryant in Los Angeles per se, but he is still a young-enough veteran with an affordable, expiring salary that could also be a long-term asset for the Lakers if they decide to keep him beyond this season or a trade chip if they don't.
Bleacher Report's Dan Favale noted that even if Mayo is the Bucks starting two guard, he is also their best trade bait at the moment.
Apart from some hamstring issues, Favale said that the former USC standout has "been mostly effective on an individual level in his few appearances" for Jason Kidd's squad this season.
However, the Bucks wing rotation is "pretty crowded" right now with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jerryd Bayless, Carter-Williams and Khris Middleton. The emergence of rookie shooting guard Rashad Vaughn and the return of 2014 second overall pick Jabari Parker complicates things a little more, which may leave Mayo out of Kidd's priority altogether.
Favale suggests future draft picks or a player "who can command something" would be enough in exchange for Mayo rather than to simply let him go when he becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer.
