Category: Trade Rumors

Report: Kings considering Bogdanovic for Kuzma swap with Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers are listening to offers for Kyle Kuzma and may get a very talented young player in the process.

Things change quickly in the National Basketball Association and only a few days after it looked like Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma wouldn’t be going anywhere, reports suggest the Lakers are indeed taking calls with potential trade partners on a move involving their third-year forward.

The Sacramento Kings are one of the teams reportedly interested in Kuzma and they are going into negotiations knowing they will likely have to part ways with wing Bogdan Bogdanovic, who will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season, according to Marc Stein of the New York Times.  Bogdanovic is averaging 14 points and 3.6 assists per game while shooting 38.8% from the 3-point line on 6.9 attempts per game.

Bogdanovic is not as well-known to casual fans as Kuzma, but he would be a major upgrade for the Lakers in several areas. The first is on the wing, where Bogdanovic would add much-needed playmaking chops and 3-point shooting. Bogdanovic doesn’t have the reputation Kuzma does as a scorer but he’s a much more accomplished outside shooter as he is shooting just under 38% for his career from the 3-point line compared to just under 34% for Kuzma.

Among the players currently on the roster, Bogdanovic would trail only LeBron James in his ability to create with the ball in his hands. Considering the struggles the second unit for the Lakers have had lately with Rajon Rondo running the show, Bogdanovic would be a massive upgrade as soon as he shows up.

As for the Kings, they have committed to players on the wing long-term in Buddy Hield and Harrison Barnes, meaning they likely don’t see Bogdanovic as part of their future.

Although Kuzma is a very talented player, the fact that he plays the same position as Anthony Davis and is a player other teams want ultimately makes him expendable. Considering the very real needs the Lakers have elsewhere, a move involving Kuzma for a player of Bogdanovic’s caliber would make a lot of sense for L.A. With only a month to go until the trade deadline, Sacramento likely won’t be the only one to try and pry Kuzma from the Lakers.

But if the Lakers are able to turn Kuzma into Bogdanovic, the rest of the NBA will likely be steaming mad.

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Report: Lakers are willing to listen to Kyle Kuzma trade offers

Kyle Kuzma’s talent as a scorer gives him trade value as the trade deadline approaches.

Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma has had an up and down season, but as a skilled scorer, he remains a valuable trade option for the Lakers.

According to The Athletic’s Sam Amick, the Lakers “have shown a recent willingness to listen to pitches for Kuzma,” a change in the previous reporting on how the Lakers view Kuzma. On Friday, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that the Lakers see Kuzma “as a core part of the future.”

Last season Kuzma, 24, emerged as one of the best young players in the NBA. He averaged a career-high 18.7 points per game and shot a career-high 45.6% from the field. As a second-year player last season, Kuzma ranked fourth among sophomores in points per game.

This season has been different, though. Kuzma has dealt with an ankle injury, and he missed the first four games of the season because of a stress reaction he suffered in his left foot before the season.

Kuzma is scoring 12.1 points per game, but he’s not playing as much compared to last season. This season he’s playing 23.6 minutes a game, whereas last season he played 33.1 minutes, due in large part to the fact Anthony Davis prefers to play Kuzma’s natural power forward spot.

For the Lakers, keeping Kuzma on and seeing if he plays better could prove to be beneficial. Despite a slow start this season, Kuzma is still talented. His ability to score in multiple ways is his best attribute. The Lakers need more bench scoring, too, as they rank 16th in the category (35.7), according to NBA.com. 

Also, Kuzma’s low salary as he remains on a rookie contract may make it more difficult for the Lakers to find a suitable trade partner that improves their team with more proven veteran talent. Kuzma has also tried to make it clear that the comments by his trainer about LeBron James following the Christmas Day loss were something out of his control.

The Lakers will look to extend their win streak to five games against the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.

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Report: Lakers focused on making moves around the edges, not major moves

The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports that teams are making calls about Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma.

Although the Los Angeles Lakers have the best record in the Western Conference, like everyone else in the NBA, they will be on the lookout for ways to improve their team between now and the Feb. 6 trade deadline. One of the ways many believe the Lakers can improve their team is by trading Kyle Kuzma, who is easily the most attractive trade asset the Lakers have on their roster outside of the star duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

And several teams in the NBA are trying that logic, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania. However, the Lakers aren’t interested in making any big moves.

Several teams are doing their due diligence on forward Kyle Kuzma and viewing whether they can pluck the talented 24-year-old as part of their future from the championship-contending Lakers, but the Lakers value Kuzma as a core part of the future and are focused on making moves around the edges and not a major one, league sources say.

Although Kuzma found himself in some headlines thanks to his trainer Clint Parks making comments about LeBron James, the Lakers still believe in Kuzma’s ability to play next to James and Anthony Davis. Kuzma played well after the comments and also made sure to make amends with LeBron and the family. Another more practical reason that makes Kuzma difficult to trade for the Lakers is his relatively low salary, making it harder to bring a veteran, impact player back who is on a bigger salary.

Teams are smartly seeing if they can get Kuzma since he appears to be redundant at power forward on a team with LeBron and Davis. But the Lakers aren’t ready to play that card yet. With a 27-7 record, it’s hard to blame them for avoiding a major change at this point in the season.

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Memphis sending NBA a message that they won’t buyout Andre Iguodala

The Memphis Grizzlies have one of the most intriguing pieces for a contender, but getting him there isn’t going to happen via a buyout.

Nobody would blame the Los Angeles Lakers if they weren’t too worried about adding to their team as they currently sit atop the National Basketball Association with a 14-2 record, riding their second seven-game winning streak of the young season. But being that they are trying to a win a championship, finding some more talent would be prudent. But if that talent is exiled Memphis Grizzlies forward Andre Iguodala, the evidence is mounting that would have to happen via trade.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski recently discussed the message the Grizzlies have been sending the Lakers and the rest of the NBA that they will need to trade for Iguodala if they want add him to the team.

Transcribed by Christian Rivas at Silver Screen and Roll:

“He’s still a member of the Memphis Grizzlies, and the message that Memphis has been delivering to the entire league, to teams who would love to get him, especially for the postseason. The Clippers, the Lakers, the Houston Rockets, you’re going to have to trade for him. We are not buying him out. He is not going to be on the free agent market. And I think the date of Dec. 15 will be an important day for Andre Iguodala. That is when the summer’s free agents, almost 40% of the players in the league are eligible to be traded. Now you can get more creative with deals. At 35 years old he is fine sitting right now, taking a look at what the marketplace is going to look like, preserving his body, but Iguodala is a player, who Memphis is telling people ‘you’re not going to get him in a contract buyout.’”

This latest update is just the latest in a steady stream of reports about Memphis not wanting to just give Iguodala away to a would-be contender. If they want him for a playoff run this season, it will cost a team an asset to get him. If it wasn’t clear enough before, it should be clearer now: the 2015 Finals MVP won’t be a gift for the league at the cost of the Grizzlies long-term plans.