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Sports Illustrated writer suggests Lakers go after former lottery pick

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Sports Illustrated writer suggests Lakers go after former lottery pick

If the Los Angeles Lakers are to become championship contenders and maximize what is left of 39-year-old LeBron James‘ prime, they need to get going and pull off one of two significant roster moves.

Summer is winding down and training camp is slowly nearing, which means their window to add to their roster is waning. They need a legitimate defensive center, as well as at least one legitimate 3-and-D wing.

The pickings are very slim, but Alex Kirschenbaum of Sports Illustrated suggested in a recent article that the Lakers go after Isaac Okoro of the Cleveland Cavaliers. While Okoro isn’t an ideal option, Kirschenbaum feels the forward could help and possibly make an impact.

Via Sports Illustrated:

“It’s no secret that the Lakers need some defensive help along the perimeter, and that their bench is lacking,” wrote Kirschenbaum.

“Hyperathletic Cleveland Cavaliers wing Isaac Okoro could fix that.

“Cleveland selected the 6-foot-5 small forward out of Auburn with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. He has yet to develop into the two-way player the Cavaliers were hoping he would be just yet. Okoro is a relatively reticent shooter, though he connected on an above-average 39.1 percent of his 3.1 triple tries a night last year.”

Okoro likely wouldn’t be good enough to crack the Lakers’ starting five, but he could beef up their bench and serve as a replacement for the departed Taurean Prince and an upgrade over lottery pick bust Cam Reddish.

“Across 69 contests with the Cavaliers last year (42 starts), he averaged 9.4 points on .490/.391/.679 shooting splits, 3.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.5 blocks a night, across 27.3 minutes for a 48-34 club that advanced to the second round of the playoffs last season,” Kirschenbaum continued. “Even during the 2024 playoffs, now-former head coach J.B. Bickerstaff wasn’t quite sure what to do with Okoro, toggling him between a starting role for seven games and a bench role for five, while slashing his minutes to 21.9 per.”

Max Strus seems fairly entrenched as Cleveland’s starting 3, so perhaps Okoro could be had. However, getting him won’t be easy.

“He is a restricted free agent, meaning the Cavaliers have the option to match any deal tendered his way. The Lakers, of course, also have all 15 of their standard roster spots occupied, meaning they would need to either cut somebody or move to add Okoro via a sign-and-trade.”

Okoro was the No. 5 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, and thus many likely feel he’s been a disappointment so far. But he has the physical tools to improve, and with the Lakers’ new emphasis on player development, perhaps they could help him take the next step if they were to acquire him.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Sports Illustrated writer suggests Lakers go after former lottery pick

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