Lakers Trade Rumors: Is a Brandon Ingram for Kawhi Leonard flip worth it?
By Jason Reed
Is it worth it?
That is a tough question. On one hand, you have a guy, that when fully healthy, can be the superstar the Lakers build around and the guy that can help them contend in the immediate future. On the other hand, you have a franchise caliber player that can become the face of the Lakers for his entire career.
It is the established superstar versus the potential superstar. Do the Lakers go all-in on the now, or do they continue building towards the future?
They go all-in on the now.
I get it, Laker fans do not like the idea of trading Brandon Ingram. I already know that I am going to get completely ripped for even suggesting it. Fans latch onto their own players and get ahead of the “potential”. It was like that with D’Angelo Russell, he was traded for Brook Lopez.
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If an opportunity like this arose, the Lakers should absolutely learn from Rusell and take advantage of Ingram’s high stock. With Ingram, the future of the Lakers is still in jeopardy. Like it or not, Ball and Ingram alone are not enough to bring in superstars. Los Angeles cannot hold onto them forever.
It would take some sort of collaboration for the Lakers to get multiple stars, the kind of collaboration that the team does not have funds for. Before you know it, it could be 2021 and Ingram may want out as no one ended up coming to Los Angeles.
That is not a guarantee and there is a chance that the Lakers can bring in some star power. However, bringing in a star ahead of time gives them the best chance. Leonard is making $20 million next year. Los Angeles would have just under $50 million in cap space. Enough for at least one superstar, a guy like Nerlens Noel and bench depth.
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Is that a lot of things that need to align perfectly? Absolutely. But with the latest Lakers trade rumors in mind, the superstar route seems to be preferred. Just imagine: Lonzo Ball, Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James, Kyle Kuzma, Nerlens Noel. That starting five is championship worthy and more than affordable.