Now that Kobe has made it painfully obvious that he wants out of Los Angeles, all eyes are turned toward Mitch Kupchak to see if he can swing a deal. The problem being of course, that trading Kobe is not as simple a process as it may at first seem. For starters, Kobe has a trade kicker in the neighborhood of $13 million that any new club would have to pick up, and Kobe also holds a no trade clause. Rumor has it that Kobe is aiming for one of four destinations, Phoenix, Chicago, New York, or staying in L.A. with the Clippers. In looking at those four destinations, it is obvious that the Lakers would not make a deal to either Phoenix or L.A. since they would never help out an intra-conferenence rival, much less an intra-city one. This leaves Chicago and New York, neither of which is realistic without massive help from a third or even fourth team. New York is a complete pipe dream, since their best offer would be something along the lines of Jared Jeffries, Channing Frye, Jamal Crawford, and future draft picks. Not exactly the kind of return the Lakers would be looking for in such a deal. Chicago certainly has enough talent, but their current contract situation, in that most of their young talent is still on their relatively low rookie contracts, would mean that in order to get Kobe the Bulls would have to offer something along the lines of Tyrus Thomas, Chris Duhon, Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, and Thabo Sefolosha. While the Lakers would love such a deal, the Bulls would never make such and offer.
So, what would the Lakers be looking for in a trade, and who can give it to them? The Lakers' greatest need as a team is at the point, so any Kobe deal would have to involve a point guard of some flavor, especially since Acie Law and Javaris Crittenton will likely be off the board b the time the Lakers draft at #19. Secondly, if Kobe is headed out of town the Lakers would need a wing player of at least near All-Star caliber to compensate for the loss of Kobe in the lineup. The third piece that would be required would be a high draft pick, most likely to be used by the Lakers to add an elite young frontcourt prospect to ply alongside Andrew Bynum. Now lets limit the scope to the Eastern Conference, as the Lakers showed a few years back in the Shaq trade that they are unlikely to trade a star within their own conference. So which teams in the East would be able to put all three pieces of the puzzle together, and make the salaries match? There are indeed three teams that could make such a deal.
Boston CelticsPackage: Paul Pierce, Delonte West, #5 pick
Analysis: This package would give Kobe a chance to play in a fairly large market and for a historic franchise, as well as the chance to play with some great young talent with the likes of Al Jefferson, Kendrick Perkins, Gerald Green, and Rajon Rando. Jefferson would of course be the main draw for Kobe, as a Bryant-Jefferson duo would automatically vault the Celtics into the top 4 in the East. From the Lakers perspective, West would be an automatic upgrade over Smush Parker, and Pierce would slide into Kobe's spot in the starting five. The #5 pick would also likely garner Yi Jianlian, a prospect that the Lakers are allegedly very high on.
New Jersey NetsPackage:Vince Carter (sign and trade), Marcus Williams, #17 pick, 2008 First and Second Round picks
Analysis: Going to the Nets would again give Kobe a chance to play in a large media market, as well as the opportunity to play alongside Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson. That trio would all likely be All Stars in the East, and would give the Nets a two to three year window where they would likely be favored to win the East every year. For the Lakers, Carter would slip into Kobe's role and Williams would split time with Jordan Farmar at the point. The #17 pick could garner a frontcourt prospect along the lines of Josh McRoberts, Tiago Splitter, or Jason Smith. This trade would probably be the least attractive of the three from the Lakers perspective.
Charlotte BobcatsPackage: Gerald Wallace (sign and trade), Raymond Felton, #8 pick
Analysis: This trade would be excellent for both sides. Kobe would step into a starting five including Brevin Knight, Adam Morrison, Emeka Okafor, and then a Sean May and Primoz Brezec rotation. The talent is there in Charlotte, and with Kobe being added to a team that has been improving steadily each year the future would be very bright for the Bobcats. From L.A.'s perspective, they would have the chance to sign the 24 year old Wallace to a long term deal. Since Wallace played in Charlotte with little attention paid to him, many people are not aware that he is essentially Shawn Marion Lite. Wallace is one of the best defenders in the NBA, and has been steadily improving his offensive game, shooting over 50% the past two seasons. Felton could step right in as the starting point guard, and the #8 pick would likely garner Joakim Noah to pair with Andrew Bynum in the post. Maybe it is just me, but a young core of Wallace, Bynum, Felton, and Noah (all currently 24 years old or less) would put the Lakers in fantastic shape for the future.
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