No one thinks things are going well for the Los Angeles Lakers and Stephen A. Smith has quite the idea about how to turn it around for the struggling team.
Smith took to ESPN to propose that the Lakers trade Anthony Davis as soon as the season comes to an end.
Should the Lakers explore trading Anthony Davis? @stephenasmith thinks so 👀 pic.twitter.com/UgnIUiYvgY
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) February 15, 2022
“Day one of the offseason, Rob Pelinka needs to be on the phone shopping his big man,” Smith said.
Smith, who is known for being very opinionated – and very loud about those opinions – is sure to ruffle some feathers with this proposal.
Bye Bye, AD?
Just because Smith says something doesn’t mean it’ll become a reality…but does he have the right idea here?
There is no doubt that something needs to change with the Lakers, the team simply isn’t working.
While many people blame the struggles on Russell Westbrook, it’s becoming clear that the issues go beyond solely Westbrook.
One of the largest problems surrounding the Lakers is that they have very few trade assets.
Westbrook isn’t playing very well and has a monster contract, LeBron James obviously isn’t going anywhere, and there are very few other players that will gain interest in a trade market.
If the Lakers do wish to land a major star, trading Davis is certainly a path to doing that.
Still, it seems very unlikely that the Lakers would follow Smith’s advice.
Ever since the team acquired him, they have said that Davis is the future of the franchise.
They have repeatedly claimed that Davis isn’t going anywhere, just like James.
Smith and many others can suggest trading him but it’ll take something drastic and Earth-shattering to convince the Lakers’ front office to ship Davis away.
NEXT: Skip Bayless Takes A Shot At Anthony Davis