Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak isn’t ruling anyone on his current roster out of potential trade talks this offseason.
Speaking about the state of his franchise before the team finds out if it will land a top-three pick in the upcoming draft, he said he likes his young talent but wouldn’t rule out putting anyone on the block: “Nobody’s off limits,” he said, via Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News.
Depending on where the Lakers do land in the draft order, the team could chose to package a pick with a young player in order to land a top veteran that suits the team’s future plans.
“You have to take phone calls. If that does happen, that’s a good thing,” Kupchak said. “That means you have players that other teams want.”
The Lakers have the kind of clout most teams covet, even after their recent slide into the Western Conference’s basement. With new head coach Luke Walton coming on board following the NBA Playoffs, there is the potential that free agents might be interested in coming on board to play with the team’s young players.
Basically Kupchak has a full deck of options at his disposal right now and has some bargaining chips to work with on his young roster and with a high pick upcoming in the draft.
Of course, the likes of De’Angelo Russell, Nick Young and Julius Randle will not like to consider themselves as expendable. But at this point they certainly are. Based on last season’s kerfuffle between Young and Russell, nobody would be surprised to see one, or both of them, shipped off this summer.
One thing is certain: Kupchak is open for business right now, and he wants everyone to know it.