The Los Angeles Lakers haven’t had the start to the season it would’ve liked as injuries and bad losses accumulate.
After bringing in 11 new players via free agency and trade over the summer, the team hasn’t developed the chemistry it needs to win a championship at the end of the season.
Could this lead to a trade? It depends. The Lakers signed the majority of free agents on one-year minimum deals. The only players on palatable contracts for a trade are Talen Horton-Tucker and Kendrick Nunn.
The Lakers re-signed Horton-Tucker to a three-year deal worth $32 million and Nunn to a two-year deal worth $10 million.
Of the players on the roster, who could be a top trade candidate? HoopsHype named Nunn as the key piece:
The Lakers have 10 players on minimum contracts, so either Talen Horton-Tucker or Kendrick Nunn is the top trade piece.
Nunn will be re-evaluated in another 2-3 weeks, Lakers coach Frank Vogel said Thursday.
He’s eligible to be traded after Dec. 15.
Nunn started the preseason healthy, but he’s since been out with ankle and knee issues.
The Lakers hope Nunn can be a strong secondary creator in various lineups who can thrive both on and off the ball after he broke out with the Miami Heat the last two years.
It would definitely be intriguing if the Lakers decide to trade players it just brought in, especially someone like Nunn who had the biggest payday out of the group with the full taxpayer MLE.
