Lakers Need to Trade Anthony Davis to Kickstart a Rebuild

LeBron James will be 40 years young this year. Anthony Davis is beginning to climb toward his lower to mid-30s. The Los Angeles Lakers have their coach in JJ Redick who is brand new to the posting. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what the Lakers need to do.

The answer is to rebuild. The two pieces that would have to go are both LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Being one of the best defenders and big men in the game of basketball, I believe Davis could bring back a haul if they play it smart.

The Miami Heat and the Cleveland Cavaliers are the two teams I’d be talking to first. It gets Davis as far away as possible from Los Angeles so they wouldn’t have to play him, and two, the Heat and Cavaliers have the capital to give what the Lakers want: young talent and draft compensation.

Trade Centered Around Evan Mobley

This trade would center, no pun intended, around Evan Mobley as the primary piece that would return in a trade of this magnitude. Mobley just turned 23 years old. He went to USC and went to high school in Temecula. Mobley led USC Basketball to the NCAA Tournament when it really hasn’t been known for basketball in a while.

When healthy, Mobley averaged nearly 16 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 3 assists last season. That is with Jarrett Allen usually being on the floor at the same time. Mobley is nearly seven feet and weighs 215 pounds. The man can be a menace. If you can get Mobley to LA, I believe that you could see him, after his career is over, being the best big man the Lakers have had since Shaquille O’Neal. He also got over 70% from the free-throw line. Out of the two teams I’m suggesting, Mobley has the biggest upside.

Trade AD to the Miami Heat

The irony of the Lakers having to crawl to Pat Riley and ask him for a trade isn’t lost on me. Riley always seems to get the best of any trade he makes. However, there have been talks of them making Tyler Herro available. There is your scorer.

Another name that would have to be in that trade is Jamie Jaquez Jr. He’d also be coming home after growing up in Irvine and attending UCLA. He averaged double-digit points in this year’s playoff run with Miami. His hustle, that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet, is what he is known for. He disrupts on defense and can pretty much guard any position on the floor.

Nikola Jovic is the other name in this trade. This would just be icing, and I don’t believe the Heat would go this far, but what’s the fun in being practical? With the injuries to Jimmy Butler and others this postseason, Jovic thrived in the first-round series against the Boston Celtics. He is also only 21.

Other Candidates

Other teams you could do business with are the Indiana Pacers with Myles Turner as the focal point, the Orlando Magic, however, I wouldn’t do a trade unless Paolo Banchero was part of it, and the Atlanta Hawks which could include either Trae Young or Dejounte Murray and draft picks. I wouldn’t want Davis in the Western Conference.

If you look at some of these stats from these young players, I wouldn’t be worried as a Lakers fan. I don’t know if the Lakers make the playoffs even with LeBron and Davis next season. The Western Conference is that deep. If done right, you could have a heck of an opportunity to recreate a winning program in Los Angeles in no time.   

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