Lakers News: Surprising Los Angeles Trade Deadline Priority Revealed

Will he move the needle for the Lakers?

Your 23-23 Los Angeles Lakers have a huge trade deadline ahead, as they're in position to make a series of moves that could potentially elevate them into true title contending status.

Quite a few players are heavy targets, including the likes of Bruce Brown, Alex Caruso, and Zach LaVine. 

Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer recently revealed to Lakers Lounge's Anthony Irwin that no player is higher up on their priority list than the Hawks' Dejounte Murray.

“I do think Dejounte is the Lakers top priority. Objectively, he’s the best player on the board who is still young, has All-Star credentials, and is a on a team-friendly contract.” - @JakeLFischer pic.twitter.com/MLE5EMAZNn

— Tristan (@TBeckmann24) January 25, 2024

Murray is a 6-foot-5 combo guard that offers a lot on the offensive side of the ball, as the former All-Star is averaging 21 points to go along with five rebounds and five assists.

The league's steals leader just two seasons ago, Murray used to be a lockdown defender, but has since lost that reputation. Much of that could be the scheme, personnel around him, and offensive responsibility, as he went from playing under Gregg Popovich on a good defensive team to Nate McMillan and Quinn Snyder on a bad one. 

With the Lakers, Murray will have a protective backline in the form of Anthony Davis that will enable him to be the aggressive, ball-hawking defender that he was at his peak. 

Offensively, he's having a career year, shooting 38.7% from 3-point range. This is worth noting specifically given his low 33.5% career 3-point percentage, suggesting that this massive improvement is possibly unsustainable. 

The Lakers tend to see shooters struggle once they're a part of the team, which is a major concern. If Murray drops back to his 33.5% clip (or even just down to the mid-30s range, he could end up clogging space on offense and joining LeBron James and Anthony Davis as essentially non-shooters, which kills the team's offense. 

This would also mean that Murray can't play alongside Jarred Vanderbilt, which is another issue, since that duo could be formidable defensively. 

The other conversation comes with the return package, as there's limited clarity as to what LA would have to give up. If they choose to give up Reaves, they're giving up a homegrown player that they seemingly don't want to move off of. 

If they give up Russell, they move off of one of the hottest players in the league that possesses a top-tier ceiling on a nightly basis. We'll see what ends up happening here, but LA is playing with fire.