NBA Trade Rumors: Potential landing spots for Lakers’ D’Angelo Russell

New York Knicks

Right now, Carmelo Anthony seems like the NBA star most likely to find a new home this offseason. Phil Jackson and the Knicks are eager to sever ties with the scoring machine, and will be looking far and wide for a chance to unload him in the coming months.

I wouldn’t be surprised if they were enticed by the opportunity to add Russell to the roster. It’s not like Derrick Rose proved to be a capable playmaker at point guard this past season. There’s a good chance New York moves on from the injury-prone guard this offseason, which would leave a significant hole at the 1-spot heading into the 2017-18 campaign.

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Luckily for the Knicks, there’s an exciting young guard who may have just found his way onto the trade block.

Now there are a number of ways this one could hypothetically go down. The Lakers could work out a deal in which Russell and Anthony are swapped, with some other players/picks mixed in. Or, New York’s No. 8 selection in the upcoming draft could get involved.

That obviously wouldn’t solve the Carmelo issue, but he may not be willing to waive his no-trade clause for a rebuilding team like Los Angeles. If the Knicks were desperate enough to acquire Russell, though, they could give up the pick — he might be better than any prospect who would be available at that point anyway.

That leaves the Lakers with the No. 2 and No. 8 picks in the 2017 NBA Draft. That yields them a potential superstar guard and another running mate who can help round out a roster that’s only a couple of pieces away from contending.