Lakers Could Gain Major Cap Flexibility by Trading For All-Star

Would Los Angeles take a big swing on this wing?

Mar 3, 2021; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) shoots a shot over Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine (8) during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Even under highly-touted new head coach J.J. Redick, the 2024-25 Los Angeles Lakers find themselves looking just as mediocre as they did in 2023-24. Last year, the team went 47-35 and got eliminated in five quick games from the first round of the Western Conference playoffs by the then-reigning champion Denver Nuggets, who had swept L.A. out of the Western Conference Finals the previous year.

This season's team looks almost entirely the same. Thanks to extreme inaction from team president/general manager Rob Pelinka, the Lakers are now the team with the longest gap between trades, having not made a move since February 2023. Only two players on this year's roster — rookie guards Dalton Knecht and Bronny James — are new.

After falling to the Detroit Pistons on Monday night, the Lakers are now 16-13 on the season and occupy the No. 7 seed in the talented Western Conference. L.A. is just 1.5 games ahead of the No. 11-seeded Phoenix Suns, currently on the outside of even the play-in picture despite fielding three multi-time All-Stars in Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal.

The Lakers' perimeter defense has been especially egregious, while their depth behind All-NBA center Anthony Davis has also been lackluster — in part because most of his top backups have been out for much of the season.

Clearly, a shakeup of at least some level is necessary.

ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel notes that a reunion with the Lakers' former No. 2 pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, All-Star New Orleans Pelicans small forward Brandon Ingram, could help improve the team's ceiling this year while also giving it lots of salary real estate in the short-term future.

"In Ingram's case, he is on an expiring deal, which would open up a lot of cap flexibility for a team like the Lakers if they were to trade for him," Siegel writes.

Would adding a third All-Star to their aging core of LeBron James, 39, and Davis, 31, really help push the Lakers over the top? Or is James too "washed," in the parlance of the times, a la Michael Jordan during his Washington Wizards tenure? James this year is as old as Jordan was during his final NBA season, ages 39-40.

James' former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Shawn Marion, a four-time All-Star during his halcyon days with the Phoenix Suns and a champion starter while on the Dallas Mavericks, recently explained to NBA insider Brandon "Scoop B" Robinson why the 20-time All-Star's recent seasons in L.A. have been unlike Jordan's two playoff-free seasons in D.C., from 2001-03.

“LeBron has Anthony Davis on the team with him,” Marion said. “MJ didn’t have anyone else on the team with him in Washington that was capable of being an All-Star at that time and being an active current All-Star and probably having a good chance of being with another top five or top ten player in the league — you play with another top five player, he would probably would’ve had a good chance to win; possibly get to the championships or the playoffs."

Though he's been hurt a decent amount this year for the West-worst Pelicans, Ingram is averaging 22.2 points on .465/.374/.855 shooting splits, 5.6 rebounds and 5.2 assists in his 18 healthy games. As a three-level wing scorer, he'd be a significant upgrade over inconsistent current starting small forward Rui Hachimura. Adding Ingram would hardly address the Lakers' defensive issues along the wing, although he is at least faster laterally than Hachimura.

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