The NBA trade deadline is at 3 p.m. Eastern time this Thursday, and time is running out for teams to make offers for players they want to acquire.
Ample rumors continue to swirl regarding what the Los Angeles Lakers may do to augment their roster. They have been on the hunt for the Atlanta Hawks’ Dejounte Murray, although they may have backed off that pursuit in recent days.
Perhaps the Lakers desire landing a wing or forward more than Murray, who could give them an upgrade in the scoring, defense, speed and athleticism departments at the point guard position. According to Michael Scotto, they have inquired about possibly landing forward Danilo Gallinari from the Detroit Pistons.
Via HoopsHype:
“Another player rival executives are monitoring is Danilo Gallinari who’s continued to be a knockdown 3-point shooter while playing minutes at the four and small ball five at times in the final year of his contract,” Scotto wrote. “The Lakers are among the teams who’ve checked in on Gallinari’s price tag to acquire him, league sources told HoopsHype.”
Gallinari, 35, is mostly a power forward and small-ball center at this stage of his career. He was recently traded to the Pistons by the Washington Wizards, and he’s averaging 7.5 points in 15 minutes a game while shooting 44.7% overall and 35.5% from 3-point range this season. He has a career mark of 38.2% from downtown.
The 6-foot-10 veteran missed all of last season with a torn ACL he suffered in a FIBA World Cup qualifier game for his native Italy.