Lakers news: The Los Angeles Lakers are reportedly closing in on making the first big trade of the NBA offseason, engaged in advanced talks to land Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Dennis Schroder.
After winning the 2020 NBA Finals in the bubble, the Lakers head into the offseason hoping to surround LeBron James and Anthony Davis with more talent. While they’ve already been connected to plenty of marquee names, both via trades and free agency, the Lakers might already have a deal lined up.
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Lakers news: Dennis Schroder trade to Lakers?
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Lakers are in advanced talks with Oklahoma City on a trade to acquire Dennis Schroder. As part of the discussed deal, the Thunder would receive Danny Green and the No. 28 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.
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While the NBA still has a moratorium on any transactions in place, that is expected to be lifted within the next 24 hours. With the NBA Draft set to take place on Wednesday, a deal would likely be struck before the Lakers were on the clock at No. 28 overall.
Los Angeles has been seeking to add a point guard this winter, with Rajon Rondo headed for free agency. While LeBron led the NBA in assists, the team needs another scorer and ball-handler.
Schroder finished second in voting for the NBA’s Sixth Man Award. He enjoyed another outstanding season with Oklahoma City, averaging 18.9 points and four assists per game, while playing nearly 31 minutes per night. He also proved to be an efficient shooter, hitting 46.9% of his shots and 38.5% from beyond the arc.
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Conveniently for the Lakers, Schroder and Green’s contracts match rather nicely. The 27-year-old point guard is owed $15.5 million in the final year of his contract, while Green is due $15.365 million for the 2020-’21 season.
Trading Green would weaken the Lakers’ wing defense and it could become their top priority to address in free agency. But, assuming this trade is complete, Schroder would be a tremendous addition.
Lakers news: When can NBA teams trade?
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NBA’s offseason schedule was completely thrown off this year. Fortunately, after prolonged negotiations between the league and NBA Players Association, key dates are set for the offseason and upcoming regular season.
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According to Wojnarowski, NBA teams will be allowed to make trades with the moratorium lift on Monday at 12 PM EST. Once the clock strikes, we could see a flurry of transactions across the league as teams prepare for a potentially wild NBA Draft.
NBA schedule for 2020-’21 season
- Dec. 22: NBA regular season begins
- March 5-10: NBA All-Star Break
- May 16: NBA regular season concludes
- May 17-21: Play-in tournament for No. 7-10 seeds in each conference
- May 22: First round of NBA Playoffs
- June 7: NBA Conference Semifinals begin
- June 22: NBA Conference Finals start
- July 8-22: NBA Finals