Three-Team NBA Mock Trade Allows Lakers to Contend, Kings to Rebuild
With three seasons left on his contract and as the best rebounder in the league, Sabonis would trail only Giannis Antetokounmpo as the most sought-after player on the trade block.
Advertisement
The Los Angeles Lakers, after their first-round exit, will likely look for a player who can both maximize the end of LeBron James' prime and be Luka Doncic's long-term running mate, and Sabonis fits the bill.
He won't come cheap, but a three-team trade could allow the Kings to rebuild, the Lakers to contend in the West, and the Memphis Grizzlies to bounce back after two disappointing seasons in a row.
Dec 21, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) and Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk (0) fight for possession of the ball during the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center. © Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images
NBA Mock Trade Checks All the Boxes
Assuming that the Kings are interested in a full-on rebuild, adding as much draft capital while shedding as much salary will be the priority. The Grizzlies, with Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr., can compete in the West but could use an added star (or two!), and the Lakers need a paint presence and a scorer who is not that ball-dominant.
Advertisement
While this mock trade certainly makes the Kings less competitive, the massive haul of young talent and draft capital would make it worth it in the long run.
Full Mock Trade Details
Kings receive: Rui Hachimura, Dorian Finney-Smith, Jarred Vanderbilt, Gabe Vincent, Maxi Kelber, Dalton Knecht, 2027 first-round pick (via MEM), 2029 first-round pick (via MEM), 2031 first-round pick (via LAL), 2031 first-round pick (via MEM)
Lakers receive: Domantas Sabonis, Desmond Bane
Grizzlies receive: DeMar DeRozan, Austin Reaves
The Lakers get Sabonis for Knecht and a pick, which is what they were going to pay for Mark Williams during the season. They do have to give up Reaves, but replace him with Desmond Bane, who is less talented, but would fit in well with James and Doncic.
Advertisement
The Grizzlies, meanwhile, add a high-level scorer in DeRozan and a fringe All-Star guard next to Morant. A starting five of Morant, Reaves, DeRozan, Jackson Jr., and Zach Edey is pretty solid, and they get to keep key depth pieces as well.
The Kings, meanwhile, get to shed the salaries of Finney-Smith, Kelber, Vincent, and Hachimura next offseason when they are free agents, and have only one more season after that of paying LaVine. Once LaVine is off the books, the Kings will have three first-round picks in 2027, two in 2029, and two in 2031, as well as a single pick in both 2028 and 2030, as well as plenty of cap space.
It's not a fast rebuild in Sacramento, but fans of the Kings have developed more patience than any other fan base in the league.
Some have criticized Sabonis' potential fit and contract in Los Angeles, and his lack of defensive prowess is certainly a concern, although his offensive fit next to Doncic in a post-James era would be pretty seamless.
Advertisement
While losing Reaves is a massive loss, the long-term viability of him in Hollywood is questionable, anyway, and replacing him with Bane, who is one of the best shooters in the league, is a pretty solid deal.
This Kings' roster is not going to compete with their current construction, and blowing it all up for the best roster possible is hard to pass up, especially when Knecht is included in the deal, rounding out the wings long-term next to Keegan Murray.
Check out the Inside the Kings homepage for more news, analysis, and must-read articles.
Related: Mock Trade Sends Kings' DeMar DeRozan Home to Los Angeles in Offseason Deal With Lakers
Related: Kings Predicted to Finally Land Former Top Trade Target in Offseason Deal With Bucks
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
26 minutes ago
Mike Yastrzemski homers in his 1st at-bat as a Royal in 9-3 victory over the Blue Jays
TORONTO -- Mike Yastrzemski homered in his first at-bat with Kansas City, Michael Wacha limited Toronto to a run in eight innings in his longest outing of the season and the Royals beat the Blue Jays 9-3 on Friday night. Acquired from San Francisco just before the trade deadline Thursday, Yastrzemski had a two-run shot off Kevin Gausman (7-8) in the second inning to make it 2-1. Wacha (5-9) allowed three hits and stuck out five, helping the Royals improve to .500 for the first time since June 20. He gave up one run for the fourth consecutive start. Bobby Witt Jr., Salvador Perez and Adam Frazier also homered for Kansas City. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had two-out homer in the first inning to give Toronto a 1-0 lead. After Yastrzemski gave the Royals the lead in the second, and Witt's three-run homer made it 5-1 in the third. Kansas City added four runs in the ninth. Perez and Frazier homered and Maikel Garcia had a bases-loaded single. Addison Barger hit a two-run homer for Toronto in the ninth. Yastrzemski wasted no time getting his first big hit for Kansas City, hitting the two-run homer in the second inning. The Royals scored five or more runs for the eighth time in 13 games since the All-Star break. Kansas City LHP Noah Cameron (5-4, 2.44 ERA) was set to start Saturday against Toronto RHP Max Scherzer (1-1, 4.89). ___
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Lakers have revealed their 2025-26 City Edition jerseys
The Los Angeles Lakers have one of the most iconic uniform designs in all of sports. The design has seen some tweaks over the years, but it has largely remained the same, generally speaking, for over 50 years. Every team has four uniforms it can wear, which include the City Edition uniforms. The Lakers' City Edition uniforms for the 2024-25 season weren't well regarded, and they played so poorly in them that they stopped wearing them around midseason. This coming season, the Lakers will be recycling their City Edition uniforms from the 2023-24 campaign, per the team's official X (formerly Twitter) account. When this design was first unveiled two years ago, plenty thought it was at least somewhat uninspired and even boring. The fact that the team is simply using it again instead of coming up with a new one has led to fans expressing their disappointment. On a brighter note, the Lakers' Statement Edition uniforms have been improved. The black stripe down the sides that they had has been removed, and the team's wordmark and the player numbers are now in white with gold trim. Now, if only L.A.'s Icon Edition uniforms would go with gold instead of yellow as their primary color, the team's fans would likely be happy enough with its on-court threads. This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers have revealed their 2025-26 City Edition jerseys
USA Today
30 minutes ago
- USA Today
Lakers have revealed their 2025-26 City Edition jerseys
The Los Angeles Lakers have one of the most iconic uniform designs in all of sports. The design has seen some tweaks over the years, but it has largely remained the same, generally speaking, for over 50 years. Every team has four uniforms it can wear, which include the City Edition uniforms. The Lakers' City Edition uniforms for the 2024-25 season weren't well regarded, and they played so poorly in them that they stopped wearing them around midseason. This coming season, the Lakers will be recycling their City Edition uniforms from the 2023-24 campaign, per the team's official X (formerly Twitter) account. When this design was first unveiled two years ago, plenty thought it was at least somewhat uninspired and even boring. The fact that the team is simply using it again instead of coming up with a new one has led to fans expressing their disappointment. On a brighter note, the Lakers' Statement Edition uniforms have been improved. The black stripe down the sides that they had has been removed, and the team's wordmark and the player numbers are now in white with gold trim. Now, if only L.A.'s Icon Edition uniforms would go with gold instead of yellow as their primary color, the team's fans would likely be happy enough with its on-court threads.
