NBA Trade Rumors: 5 big names allegedly on the block right now

Julius Randle, PF, Los Angeles Lakers

Yes, another Laker who could easily be on a new team before February’s trade deadline passes. Magic Johnson is dead set on creating cap space for a free agency spending spree, and Julius Randle doesn’t appear to be a part of the franchise’s long-term plans.

At least, that’s according to ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski, who claimed that Randle’s future is “very unlikely to continue with the Lakers.” The 2014 first round pick is scheduled to hit restricted free agency next offseason. Re-signing him would put a sizable damper on landing the two superstars Johnson is aiming for.

Assuming Wojnarowski’s assertion is true (which they usually are), Randle seems like a perfect trade chip. He may even come into play as it relates to getting Deng’s contract out of the way. The Lakers could essentially incentivize a rebuilding team to take on the aging veteran’s salary with Randle, a future first round pick and maybe some other sort of compensation.

Magic made a similar move this past offseason to unload Timofey Mozgov’s ugly contract. It cost the Lakers D’Angelo Russell, but yielded them Brook Lopez and a draft pick that eventually became Kyle Kuzma. I’d say that worked out pretty well for Los Angeles.

Especially if Randle isn’t in the long-term plan, why not use him to make a Deng trade more enticing? It’s not going to be easy with so many teams strapped for cap space, but Johnson seems to have a way of getting what he wants.