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Los Angeles Lakers: The Grizzlie to trade for not named Andre Iguodala

By Jason Reed

TORONTO, ONTARIO - JUNE 02: Andre Iguodala #9 of the Golden State Warriors celebrates a basket late in the game against the Toronto Raptors during Game Two of the 2019 NBA Finals at Scotiabank Arena on June 02, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JUNE 02: Andre Iguodala #9 of the Golden State Warriors celebrates a basket late in the game against the Toronto Raptors during Game Two of the 2019 NBA Finals at Scotiabank Arena on June 02, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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Chances are that the Los Angeles Lakers attempt to make some form of trade this season to improve the team and could look to call the Memphis Grizzlies.

Despite losing two games in a row on the road, the Los Angeles Lakers are rolling this season and have the best record in the Western Conference at 24-5. The duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis is as electric as we expected and the Laker role players have stepped up and done their job.

However, there is still room for improvement for the Lakers, who are going to have a very tough road to winning the NBA Title. This is not like the Golden State Warriors, where they are head and shoulders above everyone else. There are two legitimate threats that could beat the Lakers on any given night and have.

The Los Angeles Clippers present the first challenge and that is the likely Western Conference Finals matchup, so long that the Lakers and Clippers remain as the first and second seed.

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The other challenge is the Milwaukee Bucks, who humbled the Lakers on Thursday in a game that they led throughout. The Lakers absolutely are good enough right now to beat either team in a seven-game series, but it would be foolish to say that they are a finished product.

I doubt the Los Angeles Lakers make a trade just to make a trade at the deadline but with so many potential fits out there, I would be extremely shocked if the Lakers didn’t may any sort of upgrade via trade.

One potential name to keep an eye on comes from the Memphis Grizzlies, and it is not Andre Iguodala, who is the biggest name that has been floated around in trade rumors. With Iguodala’s contract, the Lakers simply cannot realistically trade for the veteran forward.

However, the Lakers could easily trade for Jae Crowder, who has played with LeBron James before and would be a nice defensive piece to bring in off the bench in Los Angeles.

Crowder has not been the three and D player that NBA fans hoped he would become as his three-point shooting has not been reliable. After shooting 39.8 percent in 2016, Crowder has shot a combined 32.3 percent since.

However, Crowder’s impact would not be on the offensive side of the ball and instead would be on the defensive side of the ball. The defense is still there for Crowder and last season he was one of the better defensive players in the league.

Crowder finished the year with 3.1 defensive win shares, which was good enough for 34th in the NBA. Since 2015, Crowder has amassed 11.3 defensive win shares, which is 17th among all forwards.

He is not someone who is going to be on an All-Defensive team but based on how much he plays and the defense he provides, he absolutely would be a reliable asset for the Los Angeles Lakers.

The perfect thing is that his cost is not going to be that high. Crowder is in the last year of his contract and is only owed $7.8 million this season. The Lakers can package Quinn Cook and Jared Dudley to make it work for financial purposes and could even throw Talen-Horton Tucker in the package to sweeten the deal.

Add a future second-round pick to that package and it would be more than enough for Crowder, who would become the team’s backup three/four that is brought in for defensive purposes.

Next. Five ways for the Lakers to improve. dark

This is huge as it would take a lot of defensive pressure off of LeBron James. Having Crowder would make it easier to defend both Paul George and Kawhi Leonard.

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