NBA Rumors: The Los Angeles Lakers could help deliver Donovan Mitchell to the New York Knicks.
With training camp just a month away, there’s a good chance that Donovan Mitchell will be on a new team. And there’s a high likelihood that the team he ends up being traded to is the New York Knicks.
For a while now, the Knicks have seemed to be the natural landing spot for Mitchell. New York is one of the markets that he’s open to and the Knicks have arguably the most assets to offer Utah. But negotiations have reportedly been difficult for both teams.
Eventually, though, something has to give.
Could the Los Angeles Lakers be exactly what the New York Knicks need to finalize an offer for Donovan Mitchell?
It seems like when this deal eventually gets done, it will take a third team to seal the deal.
And according to a recent report, the Los Angeles Lakers may be that third team that finally gets the Jazz and Knicks to an agreement for Mitchell.
It was recently reported that the Jazz wants to trade Mitchell sooner rather than later, ideally before the start of training camp. Add that to the fact that it’s pretty obvious that the Lakers are ready to move on from Westbrook, and it’s not outlandish to say that they could jump in on this blockbuster deal that may be coming together.
If it does happen, the Lakers will likely need a quality player (likely a starter) to justify trading away the two first-round picks that are coveted by the Jazz.
Looking at both rosters, perhaps a player like Bojan Bogdanovic, Cam Reddish, and/or Derrick Rose may get it done. I’m not sure how much Los Angeles values their first-round picks, but if they are trading both of them, they need to ensure they’re going to be able to be competitive at the top of the Western Conference.
Keep an eye on the Lakers over the next week or two. Mitchell could be traded at any point and if he does, it wouldn’t be the most shocking thing if the Lakers were involved. And the recent reporting has only strengthened that idea.