With just 15 days left until the NBA’s 2025 trade deadline arrives, Lakers stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis are “growing concerned” about the team’s ability to make significant upgrades on the trade market, league sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Insider link).
James and Davis believe the Lakers could be just a piece or two away from contending for a title and have expressed that they want the front office to make moves to try to add those pieces, according to Charania.
That lines up with reporting from Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who wrote on Tuesday that James and Davis favor an “all-in approach” on the trade market and noted that LeBron has “never valued draft picks.”
The Lakers, who currently rank sixth in the Western Conference at 23-18, have two tradable first-round picks available in 2029 and 2031. They also have a pair of 2025 second-rounders on hand (their own and the Clippers’), and could trade first-round pick swaps for up to three years (2026, 2028, and 2030).
The front office – led by executive VP of basketball operations Rob Pelinka – has taken a relatively conservative approach at the trade deadline in recent years, opting against making any moves in 2021, 2022, and 2024. In 2023, the club gave up Russell Westbrook and a lightly protected first-round pick in order to land D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, and Jarred Vanderbilt — that deal helped propel them to a strong second-half finish and a spot in the Western Conference Finals.
The Lakers, who already made one move last month for Dorian Finney-Smith, have done their due diligence in trade talks so far this season and are open to sending out one or both of their tradable first-round picks for players who would be both short- and long-term fits, Charania reports.
It’s unclear if there will be a difference-maker available that the Lakers will be able to attain using their limited assets, especially since a few of their potential salary-matching pieces – including Gabe Vincent and Vanderbilt – presumably have negative trade value.
Still, Charania suggests, given that many of the top seeds in the West this season are young teams with limited playoff experience, there’s a “perception of a wide-open league,” which could spur buyers to be more aggressive.
“Boston, OKC and Cleveland are who they are,” a high-ranking team official told ESPN. “But this is wide open.”
If Butler join the Suns, …..
Lakers are likely to get swept in the first round of the playoffs by the following 5 teams?
Grizzlies
Thunder
Mavs
Nuggets
Suns
Lakers are the 8th seed?
Wow sounds like they are running the team. Lakers biggest assets are their draft picks. Reeves better start getting ready to move since he is their other big asset.
He’s pretty much their only positive asset that could get them difference maker…
But given his potential any more could be a lateral one…
Ant Simons & Thybulle for Reaves, Vincent & Hood-Schifino could be a good move for both teams. Not quite all in for LAL but it would make them a better team, especially if Thybulle is near 100% by postseason. Simons is basically Reaves but a lil better & more expensive. Portland clears the way for Scoot, gets a few months to check out Hood-Schifino & get a perfect backcourt mate for Scoot in Reaves & a perfect backup in Vincent.
Simmons is a much better player than Reeves so lakers would need to throw in a 1st round pick and Christie instead of Vincent.
Reaves and a First is for an all-star player, not Simmons.
He’s better. Idk about much better. I could see the Lakers giving up a 2nd rd pick here but not a 1st.
the problem with Lakers trading with Portland is they are rebuilding and would not trade one of their best players unless it makes them much better in the future. they would rather trade Grant or Ayton than a player they are rev building on. So Reeves, Vincent, and a filler for Grant would seem more likely to happen.
Portland is looking to move Simons.
From what has been said they want to have a over pay to get him not just trading money.
Swapping Simons for Reaves could definitely make them better in the future. It helps balance their team. Getting Vincent gives them a competent vet backup. Hood-Schifino could pay off as well…. But wait you think Portland would trade Ayton or Grant but not Simons? I sorta feel like Ant might be the first to go. He’ll definitely be moved before Ayton
Keith Smith has Grant as the 5th worst contract in all the NBA
He has Reaves as the 9th best contract in all the NBA
Your asking who the hell is Keith Smith now, but your not ready for the answer regardless
Luke – granted, HoopsRumors is duty-bound to cover info coming from Shams, but hasn’t LeBron been pressuring the Lakers’ front office unrelentingly for the past 2 years to trade all available draft capital on the present?
Put another way: we know that Shams may think this is something new, but is it really?
You know LeBron is probably wanting to go all in for Curry right now. Everything the have for Curry still would not be enough for what he would cost a team.
We don’t necessarily pass along everything from Shams if we don’t feel it’s notable. There are some other items from him in that same ESPN.com story that are just rehashing what we already know (Bulls are taking calls on LaVine/Vucevic, Warriors have interest in Vucevic, Pistons’ cap space makes them trade deadline team to watch, etc.).
In my opinion, the most interesting thing about this story isn’t that LeBron and AD want win-now upgrades. As you say, we know that much. But the fact that it’s being leaked to Shams two weeks ahead of the deadline with talk about a “wide-open league” signals that they see more of a window of opportunity than their middling results so far this season would suggest.
Could mean the Rob is now willing to trade draft picks and assets. During the offseason he was low balling everyone on trades only wanted to trade his bad contracts. Always insisting on D’lo and Vincent to be part of a trade.
LUKE ADAMS,
This typically isn’t the spot to ask you stuff. But in case you are still checking out the comments: imagine, if you will, the Lakers and Warriors coming to grips with their cold, hard realities and eventually deciding to go through with the seemingly UNTHINKABLE – dealing away James and Curry, respectively. I know you previously stated time and time again the odds of either scenario happening are minimal, unless they were to specifically request to be moved. Say this happens though. Just for fun: what would a return for James, at 40, look like for the Lakers…..and what would a return for Curry, soon entering age 37, look like for the Warriors? And which team do you think would more quickly turn the corner from being a ‘middling’ to a conference title (and beyond) contender?
Luke, thanks for the informed perspective.
My naive assumption was that telling this to Shams made the Lakers front-office appear responsive to LeBron and AD, even if a trade were unlikely.
Can you explain a bit more about what the intended effect of this signaling would be?
Bron has no room to talk after forcing that Westbrook trade. They would have had a chance at the finals for a few more years if that trade never happened.
The Lakers should trade Lebron and Street Clothes.
Stay away from Capela Val Vu WCarter and Poetle (at his price)
Its Kessler or Bust Imo and bust is Ok considering options above
There’s very little perimeter defenders avail and if they were LAL would be outbid for them
Doing nothing is perfectly viable here unfortunately considering the market
The LAL and the media go through this exercise every year. In the end, the LAL FO has been about as aggressive as any at the deadline, but not so much that they’ll conclude a major trade. Even if they were inclined, though, an impactful player still has to be available. I only see Butler in that categrory so far, and the LAL are one of the few places where Butler wouldn’t fit on or off the court (probably why they haven’t been mentioned as a suitor).