The NBA Finals are about to wrap up and the offseason will be in full swing. With the NBA Draft only a little over a week away, the rumor mill has already begun to work overtime. And as always, its favorite team is the Los Angeles Lakers.
As the entire NBA world is eagerly awaiting what the Lakers will do this summer, we are getting a better idea of what their plans are. However, the latest report from Sam Amico of Hoops Wire will surprise you.
According to Amico, the Lakers are trying to trade into the top five of the NBA Draft.
"One league source told Hoops Wire last week that he envisions the Lakers and Heat making a strong play for a top-five pick."
- Sam Amico, Hoops Wire
This is surprising for a variety of reasons. First, the Lakers don't have too many trade assets to pull off such a trade. They currently have the No. 17 overall pick. They only have two more future first-rounders that they can trade. They can trade one and a young player like Max Christie or Jalen Hood-Schifino, or an established player like Rui Hachimura or Austin Reaves.
Secondly, doing such a trade means that they can't really make another big move since they would be using some of their most valuable trade chips.
Plus, this draft is widely considered one of the weakest draft classes ever. Without a surefire future star, the Lakers would be taking a big risk by giving up future assets in such a move.
The Lakers presumably identified a specific prospect that they really want. However, taking that big swing for a rookie in the final stretch of LeBron James' career would not be the best use of resources. It's time to decide between trying to win now with the LeBron-Davis duo and building for the future. If you choose the former, trading up in the draft would simply be a disastrous choice.
