LA Sports Hub
Fansided

Los Angeles Lakers: Why its best that Kyle Kuzma didn’t get traded

By Jason Reed

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 22: Kyle Kuzma #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers sits on the court after he was fouled in the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on January 22, 2020 in New York City.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 Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 22: Kyle Kuzma #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers sits on the court after he was fouled in the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on January 22, 2020 in New York City.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 Elsa/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 4
Next
(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers
(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers /

Many expected the Los Angeles Lakers to make a trade, particularly including young forward Kyle Kuzma. Ultimately, it was not meant to be.

The Los Angeles Lakers seemed destined to make some kind of improvement at the NBA Trade Deadline and while the team definitely sought out improvements, nothing ultimately happened and the Lakers made no trades at the NBA Trade Deadline.

Of all the players that could have gotten dealt, Kyle Kuzma seemed like the clear-cut favorite and it is not hard to see why. Not only is Kuzma experiencing a positional logjam with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but his playstyle is not even a great fit alongside LeBron.

Kuzma has been poor from beyond the arc this season and does not play good defense, both are traits of a successful role player alongside LeBron.

For those reasons, mixed with Kuzma’s youth, many thought that the Lakers would pull the trigger on a trade, but alas, they didn’t. Heck, I was one of the people touting the benefits of trading Kuzma and absolutely thought that the Lakers should have made that move.

However, after seeing how everything transpired, it is probably better that the Los Angeles Lakers did not trade Kyle Kuzma. While I still think they are the biggest losers of the deadline because the Los Angeles Clippers got better and the Lakers did not, it might just be for the best that Kyle Kuzma didn’t get traded.

Here are the main reasons why we might look back and realize that trading Kuzma during the deadline simply was not the right time.

Home/Los Angeles Lakers