I’m sure everybody in Lakers Nation is dying for the team to do some sort of deal that would make the team better. Lakers fans are waiting for Mitch Kupchak to make a home run deal that would propel the Lakers to a championship.
But, according to Newsday, not so fast. Steven Marcus from Newsday talked to Mitch Kupchak, who is a New York native, about various topics, including the Lakers making trades.
Asked about his remaining options to salvage this season, Kupchak said, “We will not make a trade. We will not trade Dwight Howard. We have no intention of making a trade. It’s unlikely that we’ll make any trade with any of our principal players. To make another change at this time of the year being behind the eight-ball like we are, I think that would just make it more difficult. The talent is there. We have to find our way.”
It could very well mean a smoke screen but it makes perfect sense for the Lakers not to do any moves at this point (unless they’re minor ones to make the bench better). The Lakers season has been marred with coaching changes, philosophical clashes, and numerous injuries. Steve Nash fractured his leg, and that injury alone kept him out for nearly two months. Pau Gasol has missed games to knee tendinitis and a concussion. Jordan Hill is out for the season. And Dwight Howard is out nursing a shoulder injury. So this team has really never gotten that much run this season.
—- Show off your team pride with your own Lakers Nation t-shirt! —-
Don’t forget that Mike Brown was fired five games into the season, ushering in Mike D’Antoni nearly a week later. D’Antoni had no training camp to implement his system so it’s still taking a while for players to adjust, which hasn’t exactly made guys like Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol too happy. Gasol was sent to the bench recently though he has been starting in place of an injured Dwight Howard in the last few games.
For the Lakers to make another move would upset the balance even more. They’ve already made so many changes this season so the team really should settle in at some point. The Lakers have won five of their last six games, the latest one being an ugly affair in Detroit. Unless the Lakers trade Darius Morris for LeBron James (which is obviously impossible), I don’t think the organization should make a trade. But, hey, Kupchak is known to work in a secretive fashion. He could be saying stuff like this now but he’s not going to hesitate to pull the trigger if some potential deal fancies him.
And remember that teams aren’t exactly lining up to deal with the Lakers. The Lakers have been juggernauts in the NBA for seemingly forever. The rest of the league doesn’t feel sorry for them so they’re not going to try to help them.
The Lakers will move on, though. On Tuesday, the Lakers march into Brooklyn. The Nets will try to avenge their earlier loss from November. That also happened to be the first Laker game Mike D’Antoni coached.
