The Los Angeles Lakers’ recent 118-97 blowout loss against the Dallas Mavericks without Kyrie Irving or Luka Dončić on Tuesday night marked the team’s lowest point in the 2024-25 season.
At 40 years old, four-time NBA champion LeBron James is averaging 23.8 points, 8.8 assists and 7.7 rebounds for a Lakers squad hovering above .500 with a 20-16 record, currently placing as the Western Conference’s No. 6 seed.
The Lakers’ general manager Rob Pelinka could make one of two choices at this juncture. He could either try desperately to gather his most valued assets and trade them for a star to supplement James, or he can part ways with the legendary forward to hit the reset button.
In fact, it may be of utmost importance to Pelinka to trade with a franchise busting at the seams with young talent. As a potential destination for the future Hall-of-Famer, the organization that could be a perfect suitor in a league-altering agreement centered around James is the San Antonio Spurs.
While it would certainly be tough for the Lakers front office to let go of an all-time talent, it may be their only option moving forward. As a fantastic consolation prize, Los Angeles could come away with a package centered around San Antonio’s No. 4 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft and future All-Star guard, Stephon Castle.
At just 20 years old, the 6-foot-6 point guard has made an immediate impact for the Spurs. San Antonio is currently fighting for a spot in the Play-In Tournament with Castle leading their bench unit.
Castle is currently contributing 10.7 points and 3.7 assists in 19 starts and 36 appearances in total for the Spurs as a rookie, giving Los Angeles plenty of reason to make a deal to swoop in and acquire his services as their possible star point guard for the next decade.
As currently constructed, the Lakers are not positioned to win another title in the James era, or even clinch a guaranteed postseason berth to avoid the Play-In Tournament. On account of James’ age, there’s no better time to take advantage of his value while he is still performing at an All-NBA level than prior to the Feb. 6 trade deadline.
In a deal for James to complement their superstar center Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio would likely give up a hefty package around Castle including Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson or Malaki Branham along with plenty of first-round draft capital to get the Lakers started with their rebuild.
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