The Los Angeles Lakers’ deficiencies were put on full display during Thursday’s 119-96 Christmas Day home loss to the Houston Rockets, their third straight defeat.
While Lakers coach JJ Redick attributed the letdown to his team’s subpar effort, according to NBA insider Kevin O’Connor, only a roster shake-up can save the Purple and Gold.
Kevin O’Connor Anticipates Major Lakers Overhaul, Suggests LeBron James Trade
LA never led on Thursday, falling behind by as many as 24 points in the second half. Houston wing Amen Thompson and superstar forward Kevin Durant accounted for 51 points, marking two of six Rockets players who tallied at least 13 points.
The Lakers were unable to keep up defensively from the get-go, a concern that NBA legend Charles Barkley amplified during ESPN’s halftime show. Meanwhile, their supporting cast struggled to generate consistent offense to make up for superstars Luka Dončić and LeBron James’ relatively quiet nights, especially after star shooting guard Austin Reaves’ early exit (calf).
Following the disappointing showing, Redick said LA’s lack of “effort and execution” made it a “terrible basketball team” from the opening tip. The second-year coach added that his players “don’t care enough right now,” vowing to have some “uncomfortable” conversations.
Shortly after, O’Connor took to X to express his view that the Lakers need roster changes rather than just a mentality shift, issuing a bold prediction.
“Trades are coming in Los Angeles. Just a matter of who and when,” O’Connor wrote. “Without them, this team has no chance of winning a title this year. That much is obvious after watching the Lakers as of late and listening to what JJ Redick said postgame.”
When asked whether he would trade Reaves or James to retool around Dončić, O’Connor didn’t hesitate to choose the latter. However, he noted that the situation isn’t cut-and-dry due to contract and age-related circumstances.
“LeBron, but the Reaves situation is more complicated than it appears on the surface. It’s not just ‘he’s young, so keep him.’ Teams with lots of cap space (the Jazz) are going to make significant offers for Reaves this summer since he can be an unrestricted free agent,” O’Connor reasoned.
“Does Reaves want to stay in Los Angeles and be second fiddle to Luka show, just like [Jalen] Brunson had to be in Dallas? Or will he leave? If the Lakers are worried Reaves is a flight risk, then maybe he needs to be moved.
“However, other teams know this too. And they’d need to feel confident he wants to be there for the long term for the Lakers to receive anything of fair value in return. Same issue with LeBron though given his age [40]. Not a lot of clear answers for LA.”
Despite their recent drop-off, the Lakers sit fourth in the Western Conference (19-10). Still, they are only three games ahead of the seventh-seeded Phoenix Suns (16-13), in jeopardy of slipping into a play-in spot.
They also possess the league’s sixth-worst defensive rating (118.1), a concerning metric for an aspiring title contender. LA’s lack of a defensive stopper on the wing, in particular, will likely put general manager Rob Pelinka under mounting pressure to rectify the problem ahead of the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline.
