Lakers Trade Pitch Nets $160 Million Wing for 1st-Round Pick

The Los Angeles Lakers have two unencumbered first-round draft picks to trade for a third star alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but there are players the team could potentially secure for less.

Talking heads around the NBA have floated combo forward Jerami Grant of the Portland Trail Blazers as a Lakers trade candidate plenty this summer. Wes Goldberg of the “Locked on NBA” podcast took that a step further on Thursday, August 1, when he suggested the time has come for the Blazers to “dump” Grant on the Lakers for a first-round pick and expiring contracts.

“Are [the Blazers] gonna find somewhere to dump Jerami Grant?” Goldberg said. “It seems like they’re trying. They’re asking for two first-round picks. It feels like they probably should settle for one first-round pick, and it feels like they should probably just trade him to the Lakers for a bunch of shortish contracts and a first and kind of bet on the Lakers bottoming out in the future.”

Grant is under contract through the 2027-28 campaign (player option that season) on a five-year deal worth $160 million total. He will earn nearly $30 million next season and doesn’t make much sense for a Blazers team that finished last year with a 21-61 win/loss record that rendered them the worst group in the Western Conference and tied for the third-worst squad in the entire NBA.

Jerami Grant Trade Would Allow Lakers to Get Off D’Angelo Russell’s Contract

The Lakers’ salary filler on a deal for Grant would start with D’Angelo Russell.

Los Angeles has made clear it is shopping Russell, an offense-first point guard. His $18.7 million expiring contract is one the Blazers could easily absorb in a swap for Grant and then clear Russell’s money off the books next summer. Portland would also get off the final four years of Grant’s deal, which along with a future first from L.A. (2029 or 2031) might be enough incentive to go ahead with the trade.

The Blazers may look to get a young player back in the deal to help match salaries. Their roster is already backcourt-heavy, though shooting guard Max Christie is one player who might be of interest.

The Lakers inked Christie to a four-year deal worth $32 million on July 6, which indicates the franchise believes in his future and does not want to deal him. However, if L.A. can secure a player of Grant’s caliber and hold onto one of its two first-round trade assets, Christie might be a sacrifice worth making.

Christie averaged just 4.2 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 14.1 minutes per game last season.

Jerami Grant Fits With Lakers’ Needs on Offense, Could Prove Liability on Defense

Grant is not a perfect fit in Los Angeles, namely because his defense was atrocious last year. He posted a defensive rating of 119.7 in 2023-24, while the average league defender produced a rating of 116.1.

That said, Grant is 6-feet-7 with a wingspan of 7-feet-3 and weighs 210 pounds. His size and length should equip him to guard wings both on the perimeter and in the post. Plus, playing with a better cast around him in L.A. would presumably up Grant’s defensive performance.

Davis, a First-Team All-Defense selection last year, patrolling the paint and cleaning up mistakes would also offer a boost to Grant’s defensive numbers.

Beyond his potential to guard multiple positions, though, the primary reason the Lakers might be interested in trading for Grant is his offensive prowess. He has averaged more than 20.5 points in three of the past four seasons and shot 40.2% from behind the 3-point line on 5.4 attempts per game since arriving in Portland two years ago.

Grant’s offense would provide the Lakers with four quality scorers including James, Davis and Austin Reaves. He could also help spread the floor and create space for James to operate as a point-forward.

Los Angeles is liable to take a wait-and-see approach to the trade market now that August has arrived and free agency has cooled off. However, Grant makes sense if the Lakers strike out on bigger stars and can acquire him for just one first-round pick.