It wouldn’t be an NBA offseason without the Los Angeles Lakers being connected to a handful of players via trade, and the buzz is already starting.
According to a report, the Lakers are among several teams being linked to Washington Wizards guard Landry Shamet through “exploratory trade interest.”
“Wizards reserve guard Landry Shamet has also drawn exploratory trade interest from several teams, including the [Los Angeles] Clippers, Lakers, [Dallas] Mavericks, [Utah] Jazz, [Toronto] Raptors, and [Orlando] Magic, league sources told HoopsHype,” wrote NBA insider Michael Scotto.
According to a separate report, rival teams also see Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton as a possible target for the Lakers. The same goes for Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray, though buzz linking the Lakers to Murray is nothing new.
“The Lakers likely will explore the trade market to see what type of veterans they can add to give LeBron James, Anthony Davis and new coach J.J. Redick the best chance of competing this season, with NBA names such as Dejounte Murray and Collin Sexton being batted around by rival teams as possible targets,” wrote ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.
The Lakers seem to be eyeing some backcourt help, which isn’t a huge surprise given the nature of their guard situation. Notably, point guard D’Angelo Russell has a player option attached to his contract for the 2024-25 season that he could decline to become a free agent.
Shamet has been a reserve guard for most of his career, but Sexton has a lot of starting experience that could come in handy for L.A. depending on the team’s needs.
In the 2023-24 season, Shamet averaged 7.1 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game while shooting 43.1 percent from the field and 33.8 percent from deep. It wasn’t a particularly strong season for his 3-point shooting, but he has a strong track record as a shooter and boasts a career percentage of 38.4 from deep.
The 27-year-old is under contract through the 2024-25 season, and his deal has a club option for the 2025-26 campaign, so his contract essentially has two years of club control remaining.
As for Sexton, he just put together a strong season with the Jazz in which he averaged 18.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game on 48.7 percent shooting from the field and 39.4 percent shooting from long range.
While playing in a different situation with the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier in his career, he really showed off his scoring chops, even averaging 24.3 points per game one season. He remains a valuable player today who hustles hard and brings a lot of energy to the table. Sexton is under contract through the 2025-26 season.
The Lakers will have some key decisions to make this offseason, and it’s possible that they’ll try to strike a deal for one of the guards they’re currently being linked to.
