Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James made some interesting comments when asked about the NBA’s trade deadline on Monday.
LeBron on the NBA trade deadline: "If you have an opportunity to get better, no one turns that down."
— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) February 7, 2022
James and the Lakers certainly could use an upgrade to the roster, as the team is just 26-28 so far in the 2021-22 season. That record has Los Angeles sitting in the No. 9 spot in the Western Conference.
The biggest issue for the Lakers at the trade deadline may be the fact that the team doesn’t have many tradable contracts.
While Russell Westbrook has been a hot name as a trade candidate, many teams would have trouble matching Westbrook’s massive salary without giving up more than what he is worth to them.
Los Angeles could move on from a young player like Talen Horton-Tucker or Kendrick Nunn, but there are drawbacks to making a deal for either of them as well.
In Nunn’s instance, the guard has yet to play this season due to a knee injury. The Lakers would need to convince a team to take a chance on the young guard to give them a player that would help Los Angeles right now, which seems unlikely since Nunn has a player option on his deal next season.
As for Horton-Tucker, the Lakers need him in their rotation right now, especially with Nunn injured and Carmelo Anthony now nursing an injury. During the 2021-22 season, Horton-Tucker is averaging 9.5 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game while shooting 40.6 percent from the field and 25.0 percent from beyond the arc.
James isn’t wrong when he says the team needs to take any opportunity to get better. The issue is the Lakers may not get that opportunity at this year’s trade deadline .
If that is the case, it will be up to James, Anthony Davis and Westbrook to lead the team on a second-half run.
