The NBA season is a little over two months old, and teams have played about 30 games. This gives us a clearer picture of which teams have exceeded expectations, which have fallen short, and which need to make changes to become contenders – or start thinking about next year. While there are still many weeks left until the February 6 trade deadline, teams are not waiting to make moves. Among the teams often mentioned in trade talks are the Lakers, but this year the Miami Heat have also been in the spotlight because of Jimmy Butler, even though team president and NBA legendPat Riley has publicly shut down all trade rumors about him.
Lakers and Other Contenders in the Race for De’Aaron Fox
As for the Lakers, the latest rumor circulating around the league is a trade for 2023 NBA Clutch Player of the Year and Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox. Fox still has two years left on his contract with the Kings, but he shares the same agent as LeBron in Rich Paul, making the trade plausible, especially since he turned down an extension this offseason. Fox has become a cornerstone for Sacramento, leading the team to its first postseason berth since 2006 in 2023. But the Kings’ current season, even after the offseason acquisition of DeMar DeRozan, is far from what coach Mike Brown envisioned. A five-game losing streak, capped by a loss to the Pistons, highlights the team’s struggles this year.
But the question is, what can the Lakers offer for Fox? D’Angelo Russell, Jared Vanderbilt, Cam Reddish and draft picks? It could be a good deal, but the Lakers aren’t the only ones considering a move for Fox. San Antonio Spurs is also reportedly in the mix, where Fox could learn from Chris Paul and play with Victor Wembanyama for years to come. The Kings, in turn, could acquire Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson – young players with significant potential, though not quite at Fox’s level. The Rockets are also rumored to be interested, but they probably don’t need a trade as the team is thriving and sitting second in the West.
For now, these are just rumors as Fox, 27, remains the face of the franchise and is having a stellar season – seventh in the league in points per game with 26.2, along with 6.1 assists and a career-high 5 rebounds in 37 minutes per game, second only to Mikal Bridges‘ 38. Another option could be to switch conferences and go to Miami, as he has a great relationship with Bam Adebayo from their years together at Kentucky. It would be a good change Fox or Jimmy Butler ? personally for Butler’s age I see him even but the reality is that I do not see Butler going to Sacramento although the pair Derozan-Butler is very attractive but both of them do not have many years left at a good level.
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