The Los Angeles Lakers are looking for any method to enhance their squad this summer, and adding a great like Kevin Durant would undoubtedly help them achieve their goals. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the Lakers have little interest in Durant and would not be prepared to give up Anthony Davis in a trade involving the Suns swingman.
“The only functional trade that works, because the Suns are locked in, is Anthony Davis… but the Lakers say no,” Windhorst said about a possible Davis/Durant trade. “Conversation over.”
Kevin Durant, a two-time champion, past MVP, four-time scoring leader, and 14-time All-Star, has consistently been one of the NBA’s most valuable players. Durant, 35, is still a productive player on the field, having averaged 27.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game on 52.3% shooting last season.
Durant has been hoping to return to Western Conference dominance since his trade to the Suns, but his campaign there has been nothing short of disappointing, and this season’s first-round loss was a step back from where they were just a year ago. With a limited future and no obvious answers on how to solve the problem, some have begun to doubt
Since he’s still under contract for a few more years, Durant doesn’t really have control over his situation this summer and even if he did, the Lakers wouldn’t be willing to give up what’s necessary to get him. In the Lakers’ view, Anthony Davis is a far better asset at this point, being several years younger and just overall more reliable, given that he’s only been on two teams over his entire career.
Anthony Davis Is The Future Of The Lakers
Anthony Davis’ extensive injury history is well-known to most Lakers fans and it’s ruined multiple seasons in the LeBron James era. Even so, there is no mistaking Davis’ high level of impact on the basketball court and he’s going to be an important part of the team’s post-LeBron era.
Davis, 31, just came off one of his best seasons yet. Through 76 games, he averaged 24.7 points, 12.6 rebounds, and 3.5 assists on 55.6% shooting. He was in the top five for Defensive Player of the Year voting and almost single-handedly carried the Lakers’ interior defense.
While fans often chastise Davis for his occasionally shaky play, he proved himself as a winner in the 2020 NBA Finals and he’s one of the few players that LeBron James consistently trusts to help him win games down the stretch.
This summer, as the Lakers position themselves for this final act with the King, it’s Davis who will be at the center of the plans and he will be the key to unlocking a better future. So to trade him now, after all of that, would be a massive risk for the Lakers and it’s not one they’d be willing to take for a guy like Kevin Durant, who seems to always drop out when the going gets tough.
