The LA Lakers are in the middle of a terrible season and with Kobe Bryant out with an injury, the team could look at trades at the deadline with Steve Nash, Jeremy Lin or Jordan Hill and this comes as names like Goran Dragic, Reggie Jackson, Marc Gasol, Michael Carter-Williams and Greg Monroe could be potential targets for Los Angeles over the summer.
Bryant injured his shoulder last week and now will be out for the rest of the season, but he said that he plans on returning for another year. The Lakers have some young talent led by Julius Randle and he should be back healthy for next year and the team is hoping for a quick turnaround once Bryant is back. The Lakers have needs all over the roster and this summer they will target all the top free agents, including Marc Gasol, LaMarcus Aldridge, Rajon Rondo and Goran Dragic.
The Lakers are going to be one of the teams with the highest amount of cap space and Pro Basketball Talk reports that Gasol will be their main target along with Rondo and Dragic. Rondo was traded to the Dallas Mavericks and is expected to give them the chance to re-sign him in free agency and that could force the Lakers to look elsewhere for a point guard. Dragic is going to be a target for the Lakers along with the Knicks and Houston Rockets and he has repeatedly said he will have an "open" free agency this summer.
The Lakers have a number of directions they could take when it comes to free agents, as they have big names they could go after, while players like Reggie Jackson and Iman Shumpert will also be on the market. If Gasol, Dragic and Rondo sign elsewhere, the team could go after Jackson as a restricted free agent. The team, like everyone else, wants to go after Kevin Durant in 2016 and they could make trades leading up to that summer to help clear space to try and make that happen.
Michael Carter-Williams has been shopped by the Sixers and that could be one avenue that the Lakers could go if they miss out on other players. The fact that Kobe Bryant is injured is a gift and a curse for the team, as it helps them get into lottery position in the draft, but at the expense of their best player. Kobe brings people out to the games and now he will be out until next year. Bryant has said that he will return and he is hoping the team can make one last run with him on the roster.
The Lakers come into their game with the Chicago Bulls on Thursday with a 12-34 record and they are fifth in the league in the Pacific division. The team comes in after a loss to the Wizards and they will next play the Knicks on the schedule. Byron Scott is trying to get the team to play better overall on defense, as they are ranked 29th in the league in points allowed. Bryant had successful surgery on his shoulder and now he will be out for about nine months and that puts him in line to return for the Lakers next season.
