LeBron James and Luka Dončić were brought together last season on the Los Angeles Lakers with one goal in mind –to win a championship. James is 40 years old, and although it may be hard to believe, he can’t play forever.
The Lakers front office will have a tough decision to make regarding their roster and if they would like to build a team around both of them right now or wait until James retires. If they take the former and build around Dončić and James, Athlon Sport’s Nathaniel Holloway proposes an idea that could help them win a championship.
“In a potential trade, the Lakers could send Dalton Knecht, Gabe Vincent and draft capital to the Suns in exchange for (Nick) Richards and (Royce) O’Neale,” Holloway said Friday.
“While moving on (from) Knecht could be difficult for the Lakers to do, swapping him and Vincent for Richards and O’Neale could be a solid move for them to make, especially with Knecht’s trade value decreasing.”
Dalton Knecht will be heading into his sophomore year, and although the hype was there out of college, it has fizzled out.
The Lakers timeline may be too thin to wait for Knecht’s progression.
Royce O’Neale and Nick Richards are guys who can contribute right away, and still be valuable when James passes the torch to Dončić. The Phoenix Suns could keep Gabe Vincent around for this season, but bid him farewell in free agency. As they continue to rebuild, they could dump Richards and O’Neale’s salary and take on Knecht as a building piece for the future.
O’Neale offers everything you can hope for in Knecht, and Richards is a playable center who actually has defensive capabilities. If the Lakers want to go all in with their current roster, this trade could put them over the edge.
