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Par Mathieu Seguin | Rédacteur sport
The Lakers will be on the lookout for a pivot this summer, with several very interesting leads for fans. And while one player seems perfect in Luka Doncic, the deal could be in jeopardy for a funny reason.
As we’ve seen in these playoffs, the Lakers need a true center if they hope to go all the way. Facing the Wolves or the Nuggets requires a good post 5 to combat Rudy Gobert or Nikola Jokic, and the Angelinos simply don’t have that today. So Rob Pelinka will have to find a solution to help Luka Doncic and his partners.
A number of names have been circulating in recent weeks, including Brook Lopez, Nic Claxton, Mitchell Robinson and Daniel Gafford. These are all credible leads, but it won’t be easy to negotiate, especially in the case of Gafford. The latter would like to leave the Mavericks for a bigger salary, for example.
A compromised trade for the Lakers?
But the main reason that could threaten this trade is something else. Despite interest, the previous trade involving Luka Doncic could leave its mark, especially with the very negative reception from the public according to Dan Woike for the LA Times. It’s not certain that Dallas and Los Angeles will decide to work together again soon.
Dan Woike : “Gafford, we know, is a surefire Doncic fit because of their time together in Dallas. He’s about to enter the final year of his deal and plays on a roster with Dereck Lively and Anthony Davis, making it unlikely that there’s more cash headed his way from the Mavericks”
“The trouble, of course, is that people around the NBA wonder how it would look if Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison engaged [Rob] Pelinka and the Lakers on another trade after the last deal between the teams was so unpopular that it caused protests.”
That’s not to say that the deal is impossible, but some might see it as behind-the-scenes wheeling and dealing between Pelinka and Harrison, who are very friendly, by the way. In fact, it’s this detail that may have made the Doncic trade possible, and all very discreetly. It remains to be seen, however, whether Gafford is really the missing piece in Los Angeles today, or whether another profile would be more relevant to help Doncic.
