The Los Angeles Lakers have a roster viable enough to take home an NBA championship, but for the last four seasons, they have not been able to get the job done. However, a recent mock trade from a former NBA star gifts the Lakers with a two-time All-Star that could help them get back to the pinnacle of the league next season.
Ex-NBA star dishes out bold trade proposal for Lakers to acquire Bulls’ Zach Lavine
Recently on “Run it Back on FanDuel TV,” Chandler Parsons — a retired nine-year NBA veteran — suggested that the Lakers trade away two of their most important starting playmakers along with their top selection in the 2024 NBA Draft in exchange for Chicago Bulls star guard Zach LaVine, saying this (h/t Athlon Sports’ Sourav Mahanty):
“I think they need shooting. I think when you got a guy like wings like Dalton Knecht now, you got Austin Reaves, you got D’Lo, I think there’s assets that would entice the Chicago Bulls.”
The Lakers may be able to snag LaVine amid an impending Bulls rebuild
LaVine has had his name in trade rumors for the last couple of seasons. The Bulls greatly underachieved with him, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic spearheading their efforts, making the playoffs once in four seasons together. The UCLA product may be a much better fit alongside Lakers superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis than D’Angelo Russell is. LaVine is adept at playing off the ball and connecting with a quick and confident stroke from long range.
The two-time NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion would form an imposing big three with James and Davis, offering a third player well-equipped to average 25 points per game in any given campaign. He had a noticeably down season in 2023-24, averaging 19.5 PPG on 34.9 percent shooting from outside, but his career 38.2 percent clip from deep, coupled with his career 3.9 APG would not endanger L.A. from relinquishing outside marksmanship or passing in exchange for who they’d be giving up.
The Lakers would give up a lot for LaVine in Chandler Parsons’ mock trade
Parsons conceived a trio of players who would make up a very enticing trade package for the Bulls to mull over. D’Angelo Russell is a former 2019 All-Star who has built a reputation for himself as one of the best pure distributors and clutch shot makers in the Association. He averaged 6.3 assists last season and connected on a show-worthy 41.5 percent from three-point range. He could lead the Bulls’ offense and offer them a healthy distributor to pair alongside Lonzo Ball or behind the emergent Coby White.
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Reaves is also a player to watch for his star potential. He put up 15.9 PPG and took his assists to 5.5 APG last season and shot 48.6 percent from the field. Chicago has a need for a forward that can fill the shoes that DeMar DeRozan left behind when he departed for the Sacramento Kings this offseason, and Dalton Knecht is a sharpshooting wing that would be a perfect lengthy three-and-d player for the Bulls to develop should they initiate a rebuild.
The Lakers will likely keep LaVine on their radar so long as his name continues to circulate in trade rumors. With Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka committed to building a winning roster for the right price, it would not be inconceivable to envision him trading away multiple players of that caliber for a star like LaVine to give them a chance to win a title while James’ elongated prime is still in effect.
