The Los Angeles Lakers have lost eight of their last nine games and appear to be headed for one of the top picks in the next NBA Draft. Because of that the Lakers figure to be quite active over the next month or so as they try to trade away players to gain future assets or flexibility. Brandon Bass is a name a lot of people expect to be moved before the deadline but the Lakers also want to try and trade Nick Young and Roy Hibbert, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders.
The Lakers have a few young guys that they hope to build their future around but besides them and Kobe Bryant basically everyone is available in trade talks. The Lakers would love to be able to trade both Young and Hibbert within the next month but it won't be easy as neither guy is garnering much interest and the Lakers don't want to hinder future cap flexibility which they would reportedly have to do in order to trade either guy.
Young has been in and out of the Lakers rotation this season but is currently out as the Lakers are choosing to focus on their young players. When Young has been on the court he hasn't played all that well though, as he is shooting just 37 percent from the field to go along with his usual horrid defense. Young is making 35 percent of his threes which is valuable to teams but his contract likely wipes out any positive value he may have.
Young is in the second year of his four year $21 million contract with the Lakers. The 30-year-old guard is signed through next year and has a player option for 2017-18 and there aren't many, if any, teams that would be willing to have him on their books for possibly the next two and a half seasons.
Hibbert might garner more interest on the trade market because he has an expiring contract but even trading him might be difficult. Hibbert is on the books for $15.5 million this season so any team trading for him would have to make the salaries work. In order to make the salaries work the Lakers may have to take on future money which they are unwilling to do so trading the 7-foot-2 center will likely be tough.
Hibbert's on-court performance hasn't been great this season anyway so it is unlikely he would get much interest on the trade market. Through 44 games he is averaging 6.6 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks while shooting just 43 percent from the field. The Lakers might find his expiring contract more valuable than anything they would get back in a trade so consider a Hibbert deal unlikely.
The Lakers will do everything they can to try to get rid of some of these players but for guys like Young and Hibbert it won't be easy because it is unlikely to return to them what they want. The Lakers are expected to be active but realistically Bass might be the only player they move before the deadline.
