Los Angeles Lakers: Things that must happen for a Kawhi Leonard trade
By Jason Reed
2. Kyle Kuzma cannot be included with another young star
For the most part, the common trade guideline that has been thrown out for Kawhi Leonard has been Brandon Ingram/Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma and an assortment of draft picks/other lesser young talent. While Leonard is certainly a talented player and warrants a big trade return, there are multiple reasons why the Lakers should not offer Kuzma with Ingram or Ball.
First and foremost, the Lakers have the youngest talent in the league, aside from the 76ers. However, the young pieces in Philadelphia are not being shopped and will not be offered in a Kawhi Leonard trade.
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The Lakers must gauge the market and realize that no team can even offer a young talent like Ingram, some picks, and someone like Josh Hart. That package alone will not be matched on the trade market. If Leonard really wants out of San Antonio, the Spurs will be forced to take the best trade possible.
Second, Leonard only has one year left under contract. While the Lakers do need the promise of an extension, the Spurs only have one year left in Leonard’s deal. It is hard to demand a huge trade return for an expiring deal that does not want to play for that team anyway.
Look at the Chris Paul trade from last summer. While Paul’s situation was different as it was a sign and trade deal, the Clippers got a return of Patrick Beverley and Lou Williams, among other lesser players.
Although Williams is solid, he was on an expiring deal at the time, making that trade package significantly less valuable.
And while Luol Deng naturally has to be included in this trade to make it work, Deng along does not warrant throwing Kuzma into the mix.
My ideal trade package is Ingram, Hart, Thomas Bryant, Cleveland Cavaliers’ 2018 first-round pick, Lakers’ 2019 first-round pick and a lottery protected 2021 Lakers’ first-round pick.