I hate to give up Jake in this trade but Knecht’s salary is not enough and Tari Eason is already one of the best defensive wings in the league. Second best individual defensive rating in NBA. He’s a young version of Andrew Wiggins.

Two Blockbuster Wing & Center Trades That Make Lakers Champs The solution that lets the Lakers trade for the elite 3&D starting wing and alpha shot-blocking backup center they need and still keep their draft capital is trading Austin Reaves, who’s worth at least two first…— LakerTom (@LakerTom) September 23, 2025

Two Blockbuster Wing & Center Trades That Make Lakers Champs Trading Reaves would be a bold move but would also eliminate the risk of overpaying him based on the team’s need or losing him for nothing in free agency. Opportunity knocks: now is the time to cash in on Austin…— LakerTom (@LakerTom) September 23, 2025

Two Blockbuster Wing & Center Trades That Make Lakers Champs 1. Trade for Andrew Wiggins and Mitchell RobinsonThe New York Knicks are at a crossroads with injury-prone talented backup center Mitchell Robinson who wants a $60-70 million extension and with a Jalen Brunson… pic.twitter.com/VjWvJWR5KR— LakerTom (@LakerTom) September 23, 2025

Two Blockbuster Wing & Center Trades That Make Lakers Champs 2. Trade for Herb Jones and Robert Williams IIIThe New Orleans Pelicans are a mess. Zion Williamson can’t stay healthy, Brandon Ingram has been traded, and this is likely the season that decides whether the… pic.twitter.com/RELpIxTEla— LakerTom (@LakerTom) September 23, 2025

I’d do the Knicks deal, don’t see why the Knicks would with Bridges functioning as the starting SG if Hart gets moved to the bench because he’s better then Reaves. Heck, I might even put Josh Hart ahead of Reaves on that depth chart. Knicks are awash with guards, they don’t need more. Clarkson fits in perfectly next to Hart as a backup tandem, as well. No real compelling reason I can discern why the Knicks pull this trigger.

Robinson IS the Knicks backup center, they don’t have another one so really all this trade accomplishes for them is adding the 3rd guard off the bench and nuke their sole backup center.

Yes to Herb Jones, no to Time Lord. But I wouldn’t trade Reaves for Jones straight up, especially for any pick whatsoever. If we get a FRP back that makes sense. Jones is another hole on offense, he had one good season and mostly only OK seasons shooting the three and so space and scoring will be huge issues. You don’t give up the best player AND draft compensation. Not if a real GM wants to keep his real GM job.

Also, I think it’s funny that you use the word “alpha” right next to “backup”. Wouldn’t an alpha player, you know,….start? Plus we have Hayes. Whenever I see these trades that don’t include moving Jax it makes even less actual, practical sense. We’re already up against the wall with roster spots and cap space so now, we’re bringing in another center which relegates Hayes to not playing at all thus wasting both cap space and a roster spot? That also makes zero sense to me.

Ollllllld “Master Class” at his team building finest.

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

Boston Celtics Receive:
-Terance Mann
-Utah’s 2026 second-round pick (via Milwaukee; top-55 protection)
-draft rights to Louis Labeyrie (via Lakers)
-Brooklyn’s 2026 second-round pick (via Miami; top-55 protection)

Brooklyn Nets Receive:
-Pat Connaughton
-Kyle Kuzma
-Denver’s 2029 second-round pick (via Charlotte)
-draft rights to Marcelo Nicola (via Portland)
-$2.3 million cash (via Miami)

Charlotte Hornets Receive:
-Anfernee Simons
-Robert Williams III (into non-taxpayer mid-level exception)
-$1.7 million cash (via Lakers)

Los Angeles Lakers Receive:
-Andrew Wiggins
-Haywood Highsmith
-AJ Green

Miami Heat Receive:
-Rui Hachimura
-Jarred Vanderbilt
-Jusuf Nurkić
-Matisse Thybulle
-2026 second-round pick (most favorable from Denver or Golden State, via Charlotte)
-Lakers’ 2031 first-round pick

Milwaukee Bucks Receive:
-Collin Sexton
-Simone Fontecchio
-draft rights to Peter Fehse (via Utah)

Portland Trail Blazers Receive:
-Nick Smith Jr.,
-Kyle Anderson
-K.J. Martin
-Houston’s 2031 second-round pick (via Boston; top-55 protection)
-draft rights to Dimitrios Agravanis (via Milwaukee)
-Lakers’ 2032 second-round pick

Utah Jazz:
-Gabe Vincent
-Terry Rozier
-DaQuan Jeffries
-2026 second-round pick (most favorable from Detroit, Milwaukee and Orlando, via Boston)
-2028 second-round pick (more favorable of Clippers and Hornets, via Charlotte) -draft rights to Christian Drejer (via Brooklyn)
-draft rights to Peter Fehse, $2.4 million cash (via Miami)
-$2.5 million cash (via Boston)

It’s just posturing. Heat want Rui, Knecht, and first round pick. Lakers not willing to give up pick at this point although they should. They’ll most likely wait until trade deadlne. Having Wiggins in camp and for the full season is worth the pick ino.

Lakers need 7 or 8 great role players to make Luka a champion. Not more big name superstars to take the ball out of his hands. And frankly, that should include Austin Reaves.

What if Kawhi Leonard signs with a contender on a minimum contract? What does that do for competitive balance? Won’t that be hugely distorting to the playoff chase?Inside Adam Silver's conundrum: https://t.co/bscCYFzqUH— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) September 17, 2025

From the above article:

This problem arises from two sides. First, is the league actually penalizing the Clippers by voiding the contract, or is it doing them a favor? Leonard is due to make $50 million next year and, while still an elite player when healthy, has constantly missed time with injuries. (You’ve no doubt already heard the jokes about Aspiration being his second no-show job). Without Leonard’s money on the books, the Clippers will have max cap space in the summer of 2026 and could either completely pivot to a new roster or even, perhaps, try to poach LeBron James from the rival Lakers.

That brings up the second aspect of voiding the contract: Could they leave the $50 million on the Clippers’ 2027 cap and still void the contract? Amazingly, for a document of this size, the exact mechanics of how this works aren’t clearly spelled out, and the definitions in Article I of the CBA don’t include “void contract” as an entry. Opposing teams are surely rooting for this penalty, but to me that seems an unlikely endgame — it’s basically double jeopardy, giving the Clippers the cap hit without the player.

A more interesting question, perhaps, is whether the commissioner could put the money Leonard received from Aspiration onto the Clippers’ 2026-27 cap, as this had never been charged to their books in any previous season. That would eliminate the double-jeopardy concern above and still deprive L.A. of a cap-space bonanza; it would also partly satisfy complaints from other owners that the Clips should pay luxury tax for the Aspiration money that Leonard received in previous years.

Finally, we get to the most vexing part of voiding the contract, and why I ultimately think it’s a big problem for the league: The mayhem that would ensue in the free-agent market.

Training camp is just around the corner, nobody has any cap space, and the league is likely weeks — if not months — away from completing its investigation. That’s before it even gets around to setting up a hearing with an arbitrator and deciding the case; we might be halfway through the season before we get any kind of resolution.

So, can you imagine if Kawhi Leonard were suddenly an unrestricted free agent halfway through the season, one who is forbidden from re-signing with the Clippers? What if he decides he just likes being in L.A. and signs with the Lakers for the minimum? What does that do for competitive balance? For that matter, what if he signs anywhere for a meager salary — won’t that be hugely distorting to the playoff chase?

I presume 28 other owners would be absolutely howling if Leonard joined a contender while making a small exception, but there’s no good way for Silver to ensure any kind of market-rational outcome for a midseason free agent of this caliber. The only end run I could see around this would be to suspend Leonard for the season, which seems both unduly harsh and a precursor to a nasty fight with the players’ union.

In some ways it’s much easier, from the league side, if it can drag the whole process out until the spring and then void the contract once the regular season has ended, setting up an orderly process for Leonard to find his next team in the summer. Failing that, it might be easier for the league to keep Leonard’s contract on the Clippers’ books and instead hammer them with a cap charge for the extra money Aspiration funneled his way, or come up with other novel punishments.

So, that’s the landscape facing Adam Silver right now if he and an independent arbitrator both deem the Clippers guilty of cap circumvention. If so, the loss of several draft picks and a fine and year-long suspension for Ballmer are almost a given.

The real question is what happens with Leonard’s contract. In a vacuum, I’m sure the league would likely prefer to establish the precedent of voiding the contract. In reality, it could prove so problematic to execute fairly with a player of this caliber in the middle of a season that the league decides they’re better off not bothering.

I absolutely agree, Stan. It takes two to cheat on the salary cap. This is the one type of situation where the League cannot back down out of fear for the players. In the end, we’re talking about the integrity of the sport that’s made them millionaires. Any penalty that the Clipper s are given should also be given to Kawhi Leonard.

Good read about Luka. (Also, Pelinka describing Luka as an “illusionist” rather than “magician” slayed me. I mean, one of his nicknames is literally “Luka Magic!” But Pelinka will always opt for the fancier word. Never change, Rob.) AK https://t.co/XbY79ejC6C pic.twitter.com/LVDkRtopoQ— Kamenetzky Brothers (@KamBrothers) September 17, 2025

Potential Penalties for Clippers and Kawhi Leonard in Circumvention Case—Leonard punishments:• Void his contract and prohibit him from re-signing with the Clippers• Require him to return the money he received from Aspiration• Fine up to $350,000— Clippers/Personnel… pic.twitter.com/bUt4znnbXG— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 16, 2025

If LeBron and Luka both have MVP seasons…

LeBron James about Luka Dončić after he signed an extension.https://t.co/gpe8tbk9dW pic.twitter.com/gPb9qNLEli— Luka Updates (@LukaUpdates) September 16, 2025