Lakers trade rumors: LA told Rockets about PJ Tucker deal

We already knew the Lakers were interested in a trade with Houston Rockets forward PJ Tucker, but after the disgruntled veteran missed Houston’s 14th straight loss on Thursday night, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski dropped the bombshell: the Lakers have officially had talks with the Rockets over Tucker.

According to Wojnarowski, they aren’t the only team to have done this:

The Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat and Brooklyn Nets are among the teams that have discussed possible deals with the Rockets in recent weeks, sources said.

So far, the Rockets’ preference for a productive rotational young player in trade negotiations has been a sticking point with the teams, who have not been willing to part with this sort of asset for a player of. 35 years old with an expiring contract. , sources said.

As we mentioned earlier, the Lakers have productive young rotational players like Kyle Kuzma and Talen Horton-Tucker, but not the salary ballast to secure a deal involving them very easily mid-season. However, if the Rockets are willing to be flexible about how “youthful” the productive spinner is, the Lakers may have something that could work (via ESPN’s trading machine):

At 27, Harrell is a more productive player than Tucker, 35. It’s not really a debate. What’s up for debate is whether the Lakers would be better served by treating him for a player who could lower their regular season floor but raise their playoff ceiling.

For weeks now we’ve been hearing about the Lakers’ interest in virtually any center that could even theoretically become available as part of a buyout. The problem with these rumors is that either of these guys is unlikely to be good enough to play against Marc Gasol or Harrell, and certainly not a better option than Davis at five, where he’s been the most productive for a long time. playoffs and will definitely play more when the playoffs turn.

With Tucker, the Lakers would get a super-charged version of the four-small-ball type Markieff Morris gave them in the bubble last season, getting a more robust defenseman and a career best shooter (Morris has done a bit more this season, but Tucker is better in the course of his career), which would have the potential to further enhance the Lakers’ best lineups and give them the opportunity to sign the more traditional sized save center they clearly want in the Lakers market. redemption. For the Rockets, this deal would give them a younger and better player in the void that they could try to re-sign this summer rather than losing Tucker for nothing.

Again, Harrell is the best individual basketball player here, but in the playoffs his usefulness may be more limited, his defensive flaws more easily exposed with targeted game planning by other teams. He’s also a guy who, at the moment, seems unlikely to close very many games – if any – for the Lakers. By flipping it over for Tucker, they could balance their roster the way they seem to want for the playoffs while still getting a player who might be able to play more leverage minutes for them once they are. there, and would certainly have more. Frank Vogel’s confidence on the defensive that Harrell was given.

The deadline for trading is March 25, and it sure won’t be the last we hear from Tucker. And who knows, if he and the Rockets come to a total stalemate, maybe they’ll buy him back and let the Lakers get him back for free, and they can have him and Harrell. Or maybe he’s really washed up and won’t be better in a winning situation. It is always possible. But this is the type of bet that might be worth making, and at the very least, Tucker will be a name to watch over the next two weeks as the Lakers determine what changes they want to make to their list.

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