NBA Trade Rumors: Lakers eyeing move for difference-making East big man

NBA Trade Rumors: The Los Angeles Lakers could look to pursue Orlando Magic big man Wendell Carter Jr. via trade.

The Los Angeles Lakers haven't made a huge upgrade to their roster yet this offseason and continue to keep their eye on finding a trade that could improve their frontcourt. In addition to the names they've been linked to thus far, there's another Eastern Conference big man who could be on their radar.

According to a recent report, the Lakers are interested in pursuing a trade for Orlando Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. It's not certain that the Magic would be open to trading Carter but coming off a season in which he struggled, it's also not completely off the table. Especially when you consider Orlando just inked both Jonathan Isaac and Mo Wagner to new contracts this summer.

At the very least, he's a name to keep an eye on as a player Orlando could look to move if they wanted to.

The Los Angeles Lakers are still looking for avenues to improve the roster

It's no surprise that it's being reported that the Lakers have interest in trading for Carter. Even as the NBA offseason begins to die down, they're going to continue to look for ways to improve their roster before the start of the new season.

Having not made a clear upgrade to their roster yet, it would be shocking if the Lakers didn't at least make one more pick-up before the start of the season. Los Angeles can't seemingly enter the next season without adding to their supporting cast.

Los Angeles was hoping to make a big move at some point this summer. Even though that hasn't happened yet, you'd assume a move (even if it is just one) is likely going to come soon. Maybe the start of the Olympics prevents that from happening until August, but if the Lakers want to return to contender status in the NBA, something has to give for the team.

As good as LeBron and AD are when they're healthy, I'm not sure they're at the point in their careers where they can single-handedly carry a team anymore. Especially with how improved the Western Conference has become over the last couple of seasons.

With how Los Angeles' roster currently stands, there's not even a guarantee that they'll be a top 6 team in the West, much less emerge as a real threat to make some noise in the postseason. Carter is just another player who could be on the Lakers' radar heading into the next phase of the offseason.

It may take some time but it'd be surprising if the Lakers didn't make a proactive move at some point over the next couple of months before the start of the 2024-25 NBA season.