The LA Lakers must explore the market in order to attempt to land a top teammate for Luka Doncic.
Despite a promising regular season, the LA Lakers roster deficiencies were exposed in the NBA Playoffs when they were matched up against a more complete Minnesota Timberwolves team.
The mid-season trade for Luka Doncic is one the Lakers would make over and over again, yet in the short-term it unbalanced their roster.
General manager Rob Pelinka has already pledged to focus on finding a new center during the offseason, with planning already underway.
Which direction will they go? One expert is tipping them to make a call to Cleveland.
One player who the Lakers should attempt to find out the price for is Cleveland Cavaliers big Jarrett Allen.
The Cleveland Cavaliers won 64 games in the regular season to top the East, but have been a disappointment in the conference semifinals.
Now 3-1 down to the Indiana Pacers and at risk of elimination after a blowout Game 4 defeat, the Cavaliers’ season is on the brink of collapse.
Speaking on his podcast, NBA expert Zach Lowe says he believes the Lakers should reach out to the Cavaliers to see if Jarrett Allen could be available.
Also recommending the Orlando Magic make a similar call for Darius Garland, he added: “If I’m the Lakers I’m calling about Jarrett Allen.”
Lowe added that he believes the smart move for the Cavaliers would be to stay put and keep their stars, NBA teams are known for being impatient.
“If I’m the Cavs, I would be hesitant to do something really rash with a team that won 64 games… but I would poke around at least.”
The only reason the Cleveland Cavaliers might look to move away from Jarrett Allen would be if they wanted to get his contract off the books, to use his salary for other purposes.
Allen signed a three-year $91 million contract extension in 2024, ESPN reported.
This past season Allen dominated during his two matchups against the LA Lakers, with 20 points and 17 assists in a win at the end of October.
He then scored 27 points and grabbed 14 rebounds as the Cavs won in late December, with both games well above his 13.5 points per game average for the season.
