Lakers predicted to cut ties with Austin Reaves, acquire $150 million Cavaliers seven-time All-Star
The Los Angeles Lakers‘2025-26 marketing campaign might very properly conclude on Monday evening.
The Lakers are in a 3-0 second-round playoff gap after an embarrassing 131-108 dwelling loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder On Saturday evening, and with star level guard Luka Doncic being inactive for Game 4, it is cheap to assume the Thunder will full the sweep over the 17-time NBA champions.
Considering Los Angeles clearly wants to make changes to its roster to be taken severely as a championship contender, what strikes ought to the franchise mull over this upcoming offseason?
Lakers insider Jovan Buha is below the impression that swapping Austin Reaves for a longtime Cleveland Cavaliers seven-time All-Star guard could be a roster-elevating summer trade.
“I think it would be a big mistake to just move on from Austin and not replace the ball-handling void with a real, high-level handler,” Buha said Sunday.
“If you do replace him, you need to be finding another high-level ball handler and playmaker because it cannot just be and a bunch of role players. I don’t think that is at a high enough level (for the Lakers to win).”
“I will say, with Donovan (Mitchell), I think you are going to get a certain level of — there’s gonna be some defensive concerns with that. … He’s at a much higher level offensively (than Reaves). He’s a better player; it offsets some of the defensive concerns as well.”
Mitchell has been electrical for the Cavaliers of their second-round playoff sequence towards the Detroit Pistonsconstantly making use of strain on the Pistons’ second stage of protection, utilizing his patented in-between sport to preserve Detroit on its toes, and rebounding at a excessive stage for a 6-foot-2 combo guard (6.7).
Granted, the Louisville product is not capturing the ball properly from three (29.6%), however there is not any query that he is among the many major causes the Cavaliers are not in jeopardy of getting swept.
As Buha famous, Mitchell is a a lot cleaner ball-handler and extra decisive determination maker than Reaves at this stage of his profession, making him a transparent improve over the 23.3 factors per sport star.
Additionally, whereas removed from elite, Mitchell is not the cone Reaves is defensively, giving the Lakers a barely larger ceiling on that finish of the ground. Simply put, if a Reaves-Mitchell swap is smart to the Lakers from a monetary and on-court match standpoint, they need to be throughout it this summer season.
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