James has expressed his desire to play with his son Bronny James in the past and has a player option for the upcoming season. The NBA scoring champion is starting to exert additional pressure on the Lakers’ executive office through soft power tactics. Amidst yet another unsatisfactory season, murmurs of unhappiness are emerging from Hollywood. Los Angeles’ path ahead is set to get more difficult as Rich Paul is already dispelling trade speculations.

We have the Lakers (25-25) in action.50 games and 500 balls later. Their schedule for the remainder of the season is the seventh toughest in the league, with just five home games scheduled in February. Their All-Stars are beginning to feel the strain of carrying the majority of the team’s responsibilities. The In-Season Tournament was theirs to claim.

The Lakers currently own the league’s 12th-worst record and a fall into the bottom-10 is a coin-flip bet. Vanderbilt, Cam Reddish and Gabe Vincent are still weeks, if not months, away from returning. Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura have regressed considerably in 2023-24, especially from three-point range. James and Davis are bruised up but have to slog through seven games until the All-Star break.

Three of those games comes at home, but only two are against teams with a worse record than Los Angeles. Another three come against NBA Finals hopefuls, while the Pelicans visit the Lakers on February 9th. Los Angeles having a 26-30 record at the break is a very real possibility. Still, it would be nearly impossible for the Lakers to finish the season with a record worse than seven teams. Their 2024 pick could still land in the top-four despite long odds, but a top-8 or top-10 pick would be a reasonable wager.

Again, deferring Los Angeles’ pick to 2025 is the likely play, but is still more of a game for New Orleans. The Lakers seemingly always reload and there is no way to read any James tea leaves with certainty so soon before free agency. Still, there are a few reasons why Griffin and the front office would opt to trade the pick or make a selection instead of using it later. The probability of the 2025 pick falling in the 20s is too high for the Pelicans to not try and extract an asset with a bit more concrete future value.

This includes making use of your season-long pick privilege. Isaiah Collier may go first overall this summer, according to some mock drafts; other mock drafts see the USC prospect going to the Pelicans at 14. It’s difficult to imagine New Orleans acquiring a better player than Collier in 2025 if Los Angeles does not tank. It’s arguable that taking a chance on Zach Edey this summer at 14th overall is preferable to taking a chance on a pick the next year.

At least one other franchise might be considering the same option. Maybe they have a valuable addition that the Pelicans may consider making before to the postseason. By enticing two teams to compete for the asset, New Orleans can stimulate the market. One group may own a