<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-1-kings-trade-that-would-help-lakers-but-its-not-for-a-star');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: 1 Kings trade that would help Lakers, but it’s not for a star');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_0340.jpeg"><figcaption>Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: 1 Kings trade that would help Lakers, but it’s not for a star</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-11T15:59:07-08:00">December 11th, 3:59pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-11T16:01:05-08:00">December 11th, 4:01pm</time><address><a>Zachary Weinberger</a>Zachary Weinberger joined ClutchPoints in October 2023 as a Miami Heat reporter as well as an Associate Editor. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2022 after covering the school's athletic programs since his freshman year at the FAU University Press, where he was a Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He then covered FAU Sports for The Palm Beach Post.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/sacramento-kings/nba-rumors-stop-all-your-lamelo-ball-to-kings-trade-jokes">Sacramento Kings will be in trade rumors</a> ahead of the deadline, there is no doubt that a bunch of players that other teams will be interested in. While the<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/sacramento-kings/kings-news-domantas-sabonis-camp-sends-clear-signal-trade-buzz"> trade buzz around the Kings continues</a>, the Los Angeles Lakers are a team that is seen to have some interest in one of the team’s players, though it isn’t a huge star that the basketball world might think about.</p><p>Players on Sacramento that people think about first are Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Domantas Sabonis, but the one that ClutchPoints’ NBA insider Brett Seigel mentions is Keon Ellis, who is said to draw <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1999215119033835591" rel="noopener">“significant interest”</a> around the league. He would mention the Lakers being involved in rumors for Ellis.</p><p>“One of the names that’s actually drawing significant interest right now because of his contract, he’s on the final year of his contract, only $2.3 million on the books,” Seigel said, via ClutchPoints’ show “Clutch Scoops” with Tomer Azarly. “That’s Keon Ellis, and there is significant interest around the league in him for both the Eastern and the Western Conference. There’s been rumors about the Lakers being interested.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Latest NBA intel with <a href="https://twitter.com/TomerAzarly?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TomerAzarly</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/BrettSiegelNBA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrettSiegelNBA</a> — Clutch Scoops 12/11/2025 <a href="https://t.co/zI3JODVWjE">https://t.co/zI3JODVWjE</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1999215119033835591?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 11, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>dwonnowdondw</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Ellis.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>With <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/sacramento-kings/kings-news-did-demar-derozan-hint-at-trade-desire-aint-my-decision-declaration">trade desires for Kings players</a> will ramp up ahead of the deadline down the line, Ellis is a versatile rotational player on both sides of the player that can fit on most teams. Seigel would speak on how the Lakers are a great fit in regards to on the court and his contract.</p><p>“I haven’t heard that, but it would not shock me if the Lakers were looking at a guy like that on the wing, because they do need another wing defender,” Seigel said. “And Keon Ellis kind of fits that timeline, being a younger guy, where they could bring him in pairing with Luka, extend them on a smaller term contract, like they did with Jared Vanderbilt, and they had hoped he would be that wing defender they could count on.”</p><p>At any rate, it remains to be seen if Ellis is traded by Sacramento and if Los Angeles will be the winner of the potential sweepstakes.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: 1 Kings trade that would help Lakers, but it’s not for a star

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/nba-rumors-herb-jones-is-most-popular-lakers-trade-target-but-theres-a-pelicans-problem');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Herb Jones is most popular Lakers trade target, but there’s a Pelicans problem');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Herbert-Jones-of-the-New-Orleans-Pelicans.jpg"><figcaption>Stephen Lew-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Herb Jones is most popular Lakers trade target, but there’s a Pelicans problem</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-11T13:03:13-08:00">December 11th, 1:03pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-11T13:03:13-08:00">December 11th, 1:03pm</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Trade <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-espn-suggests-warriors-trade-draymond-green-jonathan-kuminga-for-anthony-davis-with-lakers-twist">chatter around the Los Angeles Lakers (17–7) continues to intensify</a>, but the team’s most frequently linked target may not be attainable. According to a Thursday report from The Athletic’s Dan Woike, New Orleans Pelicans wing Herbert Jones sits atop the Lakers’ internal wish list — yet league signals indicate the Pelicans have no interest in making him available.</p><p>Woike wrote that rival scouts and executives most often identify Jones as the Lakers’ preferred target. However, he noted two immediate barriers: Jones cannot be traded until Jan. 14 due to the three-year extension he signed in July, and New Orleans has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6881281/2025/12/11/lakers-defense-trades-nba-cup-loss/" rel="noopener">shown no willingness to discuss a deal</a>.</p><p>“While Lakers fans can fantasize about some all-out liquidation of the three-win Pelicans’ roster, team and league sources tell The Athletic that New Orleans is not interested in moving Jones,” Woike wrote. “And considering what LA would have to offer in a deal, expiring contracts and a single first-round pick, the Pelicans almost certainly wouldn’t engage at that price point.”</p><p>Jones, 27, earned All-Defensive First Team honors in 2024 and is widely regarded as one of the league’s best point-of-attack defenders. He is averaging 9.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game while shooting 40.4 percent from the field and 34.7 percent from three across 17 appearances. Jones signed a three-year, $68 million extension in July, though that contract does not begin until the 2027–28 season. He is making $13.9 million this season on his current deal.</p><h2><b>Pelicans unwilling to move Herb Jones, limiting Lakers’ trade hopes</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Herbert-Jones-2-dribbles-against-San-Antonio-Spurs-forward-Keldon-Johnson-0.jpg"><figcaption>© Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Woike’s report also outlined skepticism around the Lakers’ draft capital, noting that their future first-round pick — likely in 2031 or 2032 — is not viewed as highly as it once was. The belief around the league, he wrote, is that owner Mark Walter’s track record with the Los Angeles Dodgers reduces the likelihood of a dramatic franchise downturn that would make such a pick significantly more valuable.</p><p>Even beyond Jones, the broader market for defensive-minded guards and wings remains thin. Woike mentioned Sacramento’s Keon Ellis as another example of a player valued enough that prying him loose would require meaningful assets — something the Lakers may not be positioned to offer.</p><p>The lack of available high-level defenders leaves Los Angeles relying on internal improvement. LeBron James continues to work back into rhythm after missing preseason and the season’s opening month, while Marcus Smart — the Lakers’ top individual defender — has already missed 10 games and has shared the floor with James only four times.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-austin-reaves-weakness-la-fix-prove-rich-paul-wrong">Los Angeles begins a four-game road trip Sunday against the Phoenix Suns</a> (14–11) at 8 p.m. ET, following its <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-fatal-flaw-on-full-display-in-ugly-nba-cup-loss-to-spurs">NBA Cup quarterfinal loss to the San Antonio Spurs</a> on Thursday night. New Orleans, meanwhile, will attempt to halt a seven-game losing streak when it hosts the Portland Trail Blazers (9–15) on Thursday night.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Herb Jones is most popular Lakers trade target, but there’s a Pelicans problem

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-espn-suggests-warriors-trade-draymond-green-jonathan-kuminga-for-anthony-davis-with-lakers-twist');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: ESPN suggests Warriors trade Draymond Green, Jonathan Kuminga for Anthony Davis, with Lakers twist');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Austin-Reaves-defends-Anthony-Davis.jpg"><figcaption>Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: ESPN suggests Warriors trade Draymond Green, Jonathan Kuminga for Anthony Davis, with Lakers twist</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-11T09:35:33-08:00">December 11th, 9:35am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-11T09:35:33-08:00">December 11th, 9:35am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>NBA <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/nba-rumors-espn-proposes-5-team-trade-anthony-davis-hawks-trae-young-kings-zach-lavine-to-mavericks-kristaps-porzingis-to-warriors">trade speculation intensified this week</a> after ESPN proposed a four-team hypothetical deal involving the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, Dallas Mavericks and Charlotte Hornets — a scenario that would send Anthony Davis to Golden State while routing Draymond Green and Jonathan Kuminga to Dallas. The concept arrives as all four franchises navigate varying levels of urgency early in the 2025–26 season.</p><p>In the proposal, ESPN’s NBA insiders <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/47262180/anthony-davis-trade-guide-five-deals-mavericks-warriors-spurs-pistons-hawks-raptors" rel="noopener">constructed a multiteam framework</a> designed to reshape each roster’s long-term direction.</p><p><i><b>Warriors get:</b></i><br>Anthony Davis<br>Mason Plumlee</p><p><i><b>Mavericks get:</b></i><br>Draymond Green<br>Jonathan Kuminga<br>2026 first-round pick (via Warriors)</p><p><i><b>Lakers get:</b></i><br>Buddy Hield</p><p><i><b>Hornets get:</b></i><br>Maxi Kleber<br>Dalton Knecht<br>Cash considerations (via Lakers)</p><p>They explained the rationale behind the hypothetical structure.</p><h2><b>ESPN’s hypothetical deal explores trade paths for the Warriors, Lakers, Mavs, and Hornets</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Draymond-Green-confirms-Jonathan-Kuminga-s-stance-on-Golden-State-return.jpg"><figcaption>Petre Thomas-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>“Should the Warriors break up the Green-Stephen Curry pairing for a shot at Davis? Probably not, but if they can’t figure out more consistency when healthy, it’s worth considering because of the massive offensive upgrade Davis would provide.</p><p>Although Golden State continues to play at a high level with Green on the court, he’s shooting 38% from the field, his lowest mark since his rookie season — worse even than 2019-20, when Curry played just five games during what became a gap year.</p><p>Davis would be the rim threat as a roll man the Warriors have long sought. They could also save money this season by structuring this as a multiteam deal, sending Hield to a third team. In this case, he goes to the rival Lakers to supply the shooting threat they need.</p><p>Meanwhile, Charlotte steps in to take on Kleber’s $11 million expiring contract in order to get Knecht after unsuccessfully attempting to acquire him in a rescinded deadline deal for Mark Williams.</p><p>For Dallas, making this deal would essentially be a bet against Golden State finding health and chemistry during the regular season, making the 2026 first-rounder a valuable pick to have. The Mavericks would also create financial flexibility via Kuminga’s team option for the 2026-27 season.”</p><p>Davis is averaging 19.6 points, 10.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 52.3 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from three across 10 appearances. Green is posting eight points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.2 blocks per game through six contests. Kuminga is averaging 12.4 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 17 games. Hield is contributing eight points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists across 25 games.</p><p>All four teams will continue their regular-season schedule as speculation circulates. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-austin-reaves-weakness-la-fix-prove-rich-paul-wrong">Lakers (17–7) prepare for Sunday’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns</a> (14–11) at 8 p.m. ET after their NBA Cup quarterfinal loss to the San Antonio Spurs. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/golden-state-warriors/warriors-news-stephen-curry-injury-update-timberwolves-clash">Warriors (13–12) will face the Minnesota Timberwolves</a> (15–9) on Friday at 10 p.m. ET on NBA TV in their first meeting since last season’s second-round series. Dallas (9–16) hosts the Brooklyn Nets (6–17) on Friday at 8:30 p.m. ET, while the Hornets meet the Chicago Bulls (9–14) at 7 p.m. ET.</p><p>ESPN’s proposal remains entirely theoretical, but it adds another layer to the league’s early-season trade discourse as front offices evaluate potential pathways ahead of the deadline.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: ESPN suggests Warriors trade Draymond Green, Jonathan Kuminga for Anthony Davis, with Lakers twist

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/nba-rumors-lakers-austin-reaves-problem-giannis-antetokounmpo-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: The Lakers’ Austin Reaves problem when it comes to Giannis Antetokounmpo trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Los-Angeles-Lakers-guard-Austin-Reaves-15-defends-Milwaukee-Bucks-forward-Giannis-Antetokounmpo-34-as-he-drives-to-the-basket-in-the-first-half-at-Crypto.com-Arena.jpg"><figcaption>Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: The Lakers’ Austin Reaves problem when it comes to Giannis Antetokounmpo trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-05T06:36:44-08:00">December 5th, 6:36am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-05T06:36:44-08:00">December 5th, 6:36am</time><address><a href="http://hoopnut.blogspot.com/">Enzo Flojo</a>Enzo Flojo is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints and a columnist for Asian basketball at FIBA. He brings a dynamic spirit and background, having expertise that spans writing, analytics, coaching, and broadcasting. He is also currently an Assistant Coach on Scouting &amp; Analytics for the Philippine national youth basketball team.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Los Angeles Lakers may dream of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-giannis-antetokounmpo-trade-vultures-circling-dec-15">entering the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes</a> someday. NBA insiders, though, say their path is blocked by one major obstacle: Austin Reaves. As Jake Fischer writes, the Lakers simply lack the draft capital and comparable young talent to compete with teams like Atlanta. That’s unless Milwaukee views Reaves as a Trae-Young-level centerpiece capable of becoming a perennial All-Star.</p><p><a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/the-jake-fischer-latest-everything?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=180749624&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=39f60&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">The problem that Fischer shares</a>? Reaves is headed for restricted free agency this summer. Hes is widely expected to draw max-level offers from rival teams. Any franchise trading for him this season would have to accept the risk of losing him outright in July. Young, meanwhile, is considered a far safer long-term asset. For now, that makes the Lakers one of the least viable suitors should a Giannis scenario ever materialize.</p><p>Milwaukee’s rocky 2025-26 campaign has only intensified league-wide speculation. The Bucks sit at 10-13. They sit near the Central Division basement despite another dominant start from Antetokounmpo. He’s averaging roughly 28.9 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 6.1 assists. That said, defensive regression and nagging injuries have fueled growing uncertainty around the franchise’s direction.</p><p>Individually, Giannis continues to post MVP-level production. That said, his brilliance has been overshadowed by Milwaukee’s struggles and questions about how long he’ll carry an unsteady roster.</p><p>Meanwhile in Los Angeles, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-luka-doncic-austin-reaves-show-totally-unstoppable-right-now">Reaves is having the best season of his career</a>. He is operating as the Lakers’ third star during their 16-5 start. He’s averaging close to 29 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists with elite efficiency. Reaves has also expanded his on-ball role and strengthened his case for a major payday. On the flip side, that could weaken the Lakers’ chances of ever using him to chase a superstar like Giannis.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: The Lakers’ Austin Reaves problem when it comes to Giannis Antetokounmpo trade

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-insider-lebron-james-retirement');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: Will LeBron James actually retire after this season? Insider reveals ‘insistent’ claim');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Lakers-star-LeBron-James-posts-up-against-Jazz-guard-Keyonte-George.jpg"><figcaption>Rob Gray-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: Will LeBron James actually retire after this season? Insider reveals ‘insistent’ claim</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-25T08:06:14-08:00">November 25th, 8:06am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-25T08:06:43-08:00">November 25th, 8:06am</time><address><a>Yasmin Edañol</a>Yasmin D.G. Edañol is a PhD candidate in Chemistry at the University of the Philippines Diliman, with a background in scientific research and publishing. He brings a data-driven perspective to sports storytelling as an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints, with a focus on the NBA. Whether it's breaking down a clutch play or a stat line, he believes every great moment has a deeper layer waiting to be uncovered.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/2025-26-nba-power-rankings-week-5">Los Angeles Lakers are fighting to stay sharp in a tightly packed Western race</a>, and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-admits-why-sucking-wind-wild-jazz-game">LeBron James sits at the center of it</a> as questions about <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-warriors-cavaliers-open-lebron-james-retirement-tour-says-zach-lowe">The King’s retirement grow louder with each passing week in his Year 23 run</a>. Lakers fans feel the weight of the moment. Reporters do too. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-makes-assists-history-in-just-first-game-of-year-23">Every night LeBron James takes the floor carries a different kind of energy</a>, the kind that <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/47084881/why-lebron-james-most-remarkable-nba-streak-now-risk" rel="noopener">makes people wonder</a> if this is the beginning of the end — or another chapter that only he can write.</p><h2>The Lakers and the insistence behind the whispers</h2><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/sources-lebron-james-retirement-plan-offseason-lakers-rumors">Sources close to LeBron James insist he remains undecided about his retirement</a>, even as speculation swirls. That uncertainty has fueled a new layer of tension around the Lakers. Each game becomes a small referendum on how long LeBron can sustain this level, how much more he wants to give, and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-lebron-james-shares-end-is-near-retirement-admission">whether this Lakers season will turn into a quiet farewell or something far more dramatic</a>. He continues to suit up with purpose. He plays with urgency. The routine feels sharper, almost ceremonial, as if he is trying to savor every minute under the lights without admitting why.</p><p>Behind the scenes, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lebron-james-isnt-the-best-lakers-player-anymore-exactly-why-need-most">Lakers team staffers whisper about the responsibility LeBron James might feel if this truly becomes his final run</a>. A retirement tour comes with its own gravity. Crowds swell. Opponents show reverence. Lakers teammates hang onto every word in the huddle. And James, still playing at a level most players never reach, moves through it all with the same poise that defined his rise from phenom to icon.</p><p>But nobody knows the answer yet: not fans, not reporters, not even LeBron. That’s why each night hits a little different. That’s why the noise keeps building. And that’s why the final question hangs over this season like a growing drumbeat: if Year 23 is the last ride, how far can LeBron James take the Lakers before he lets go?</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: Will LeBron James actually retire after this season? Insider reveals ‘insistent’ claim

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-lebron-james-damon-jones-gambling-indictments');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: LeBron James had ‘falling out’ with Damon Jones before gambling indictments');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Lakers-rumors-LeBron-James-had-falling-out-with-Damon-Jones-before-gambling-indictments-Copy.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: LeBron James had ‘falling out’ with Damon Jones before gambling indictments</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-24T09:01:48-08:00">November 24th, 9:01am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-24T09:01:48-08:00">November 24th, 9:01am</time><address><a>Zachary Draves</a>Zachary Draves is a sportswriter and broadcaster based in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. Zachary covers a variety of different sports as well as sports history, sport and society, and sport and culture. He is also a professor of sociology.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The fallout over the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-news-teams-fbi-found-bet-on-gambling-probe">FBI investigation into illegal gambling activities</a> in the NBA continues. Furthermore, the Los Angeles Lakers <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-la-among-teams-asked-turn-over-documents-nba-gambling-investigation">are caught in the glare of it all</a> because of Damon Jones.</p><p>Jones, a former assistant coach, was indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Earlier this month, Jones <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-damon-jones-not-guilty-lebron-james-anthony-davis">entered a plea of not guilty</a> in a federal court.</p><p>Additionally, Jones is alleged to have conspired with gamblers on providing injury information on the status of key players. In return, bettors would place wagers on the opposing team. One of those players Jones allegedly provided information about was LeBron James.</p><p>On Monday, Brian Windhorst of ESPN reported that James <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/47054552/what-know-damon-jones-man-center-two-nba-scandals-gambling-poker">had cut off</a> Jones before the indictments. Before that, James and Jones were really tight.</p><p>“LeBron is very into routines,” one former Lakers staffer said. “For a while, shooting with D-Jones was part of his routine.”</p><p>According to court documents, the FBI says that it has a text message allegedly sent by Jones to gamblers. It encourages them to place a bet on the Milwaukee Bucks during a game in which James wasn’t playing.</p><p>“Get a big bet on Milwaukee tonight before the information is out! [James] is out tonight. Bet enough so Djones can eat too now!!!”</p><p>However, Jones had a different outlook on life way back when.</p><p>“My confidence is never gone, never in my life,” Jones said in 2008. “I usually come out on the other side smelling like roses.”</p><p>At this point, Jones and his attorneys have denied all interview requests.</p><h2><b>How the Lakers have responded to the investigation</b></h2><p>Since all this transpired, the Lakers have cooperated with the FBI. They have provided documents, and an assistant trainer and executive administrator voluntarily offered their cell phone records.</p><p>Meanwhile, sources say that James<a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/46700252/source-bettors-got-privileged-injury-info-lebron-james#:~:text=Former%2011%2Dyear%20NBA%20player,FBI%20director%20Kash%20Patel%20said." rel="noopener"> had no prior knowledge</a> of Jones’ activities.</p><p>Additionally, James remains uninvolved in any of the legal proceedings.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: LeBron James had ‘falling out’ with Damon Jones before gambling indictments

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-nba-insiders-debate-las-place-in-west-hierarchy');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: NBA insiders debate LA’s place in West hierarchy');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/LeBron-James-Luka-Doncic-and-Austin-Reaves-celebrate.jpg"><figcaption>© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: NBA insiders debate LA’s place in West hierarchy</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-21T08:41:12-08:00">November 21st, 8:41am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-21T08:41:12-08:00">November 21st, 8:41am</time><address><a>RB Hayek</a>RB Hayek has been writing about sports for over a decade and is currently a member of ClutchPoints' editorial team after primarily focusing on betting content. In addition, he is also a published author of thriller novels, available on Amazon.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>It’s been an interesting season in Southern California, as the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-luka-doncic-guarantee-la-defense-11-4-start">Lakers are thriving in the Western Conference</a>, despite some hiccups. This has led some NBA insiders to debate whether they are Western Conference contenders and <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/47039949/nba-first-month-lessons-intel-thunder-lakers-warriors-knicks-every-team" rel="noopener">can compete</a> for a championship, according to a one-month, 30-team report by Tim Bontemps.</p><p>“It has been a fascinating opening month in L.A. Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves have put up gigantic numbers, and LeBron James has basically missed all of it,” one insider from the Western Conference stated.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/deandre-ayton-reveals-lakers-strength-amid-11-4-start-to-season">Lakers’ defense has slightly improved</a> in certain areas, helping them to an 11-4 record. Significantly, some of their best games on defense have included a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-was-29-point-loss-thunder-wake-up-call-la-needed-become-contender">119-95 road win over the Milwaukee Bucks</a>. That was the first time all season they held a team under 100 points. For the most part, they have not needed the defense to be at its best because the offense has been elite.</p><p>Doncic is leading the Lakers with 34.6 points per game while shooting 47.2 percent from the field. Meanwhile, Reaves is averaging 28.1 points per game. Deandre Ayton has been efficient, averaging 16.5 points per game. And recently, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lebron-james-making-season-debut-tonight-lakers-jazz-injury-report">LeBron James returned to the lineup</a> and will surely get into the scoring mix.</p><p>Despite this, some have doubts about the Lakers. Last week, the Lakers fell 121-92 to the Oklahoma City Thunder, leaving some NBA insiders wondering whether they are really that good.</p><p>“Opponents are having a field day at the rim, with the Lakers giving up 69 percent shooting inside of five feet (fourth-worst in the NBA). While they have an 11-4 record, they have middling overall efficiency numbers,” another insider from the Eastern Conference noted.</p><p>For context, the Lakers are 11th in offense, 17th in defense, and 14th in net rating. The insider stated that, as a result, they don’t believe the Lakers can compete with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Denver Nuggets, or Houston Rockets. Overall, they believe the Lakers lack depth, and the top-line talent is what carries them, making them a potentially tough team in the playoffs.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: NBA insiders debate LA’s place in West hierarchy

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-insider-pumps-brakes-trade-talk');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: Insider pumps brakes on trade talk — for now');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Lakers_b10130.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: Insider pumps brakes on trade talk — for now</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-20T10:56:10-08:00">November 20th, 10:56am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-20T10:56:10-08:00">November 20th, 10:56am</time><address><a>Rohan Brahmbhatt</a>Rohan Brahmbhatt is an adventure-driven sports writer, passionate footballer, mountaineer, and photojournalist. Rohan blends firsthand experience with storytelling—capturing the intensity of sport and the thrill of exploration. Whether on the field, a mountain trail, or behind the lens, he brings authentic, high-energy narratives that connect readers to the heart of the action.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the Los Angeles Lakers navigate the early stages of the 2025-26 NBA season, a growing narrative around the league suggests that the team may be gearing up for aggressive trade activity.</p><p>However, according to multiple insiders, the Lakers may be slowing those conversations down, at least temporarily, as they finally get their full roster healthy and gather the data they’ve been missing.</p><p>Despite an impressive 11-4 start, Tuesday’s 140-126 win over the Utah Jazz <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/deandre-ayton-reveals-lakers-strength-amid-11-4-start-to-season">felt like the real beginning of the Lakers’ season</a>. It marked <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-threw-alley-oop-deandre-ayton-8th-grade">LeBron James’ long-awaited return from sciatica</a> and the first time Los Angeles had all 14 rostered players available.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">LeBron James made his NBA-record 23rd season debut tonight!</p><p>👑 11 PTS<br>👑 12 AST<br>👑 <a href="https://twitter.com/Lakers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Lakers</a> W <a href="https://t.co/LkuBu0TkHH">pic.twitter.com/LkuBu0TkHH</a></p><p>— NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1991032618037420064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>With James distributing 12 assists and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-luka-doncic-insane-mic-drop-playing-lebron-james">Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves rediscovering their offensive flow</a>, the Lakers want to see how this version of the team looks before pulling the trigger on anything major.</p><p>One major reason the brakes are being pumped: the Lakers’ surprising need for shooting. Even with elite offensive creators in James and Doncic, L.A. ranks just 23rd in three-point percentage and 27th in attempts.</p><p>Doncic (31.7%) and Reaves (32.6%) are both shooting below their career averages, and defensive-minded wings like Marcus Smart and Jarred Vanderbilt continue to struggle from deep.</p><p>LeBron’s return could help immediately; he’s drilled 39% from three over the past two seasons, and young shooters Dalton Knecht and Jake LaRavia are expected to improve. But the front office knows that <a href="https://www.espn.in/nba/story/_/id/47028882/early-nba-trade-deadline-questions-lakers-bucks-warriors-top-contenders" rel="noopener">spacing remains</a> one of the key questions determining the team’s ceiling.</p><p>Financially, the Lakers could be a major player on the trade market. They have more than $100 million in expiring contracts (James, Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, Maxi Kleber) and could create nearly $50 million in cap space next summer.</p><p>But because of hard-cap restrictions at the first apron, L.A. cannot take back more than $1 million in additional salary in trades, severely limiting their options midseason.</p><p>With only one tradable first-round pick over the next seven years, the margin for error is razor-thin. That’s why the Lakers’ approach is shifting, for now, from exploring splashy trades to evaluating whether their newly healthy roster actually needs one.</p><p>As one team source told ESPN: “There’s just a lot of data right now that we don’t have.” The Lakers intend to find that data before deciding their next move.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: Insider pumps brakes on trade talk — for now

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-rumors-how-nico-harrison-hoodwinked-patrick-dumont-luka-doncic-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'Mavericks rumors: How Nico Harrison hoodwinked Patrick Dumont into Luka Doncic trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Mavericks-general-manager-Nico-Harrison-right-looks-on.jpg"><figcaption>Jerome Miron-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Mavericks rumors: How Nico Harrison hoodwinked Patrick Dumont into Luka Doncic trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-19T08:50:52-08:00">November 19th, 8:50am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-19T08:51:13-08:00">November 19th, 8:51am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Dallas Mavericks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the Dallas Mavericks continue their disappointing start to the 2025–26 NBA season with a 4–11 record, new reporting has revealed how former general manager Nico Harrison convinced team owner <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-news-owner-confesses-luka-doncic-trade-remorse-fan">Patrick Dumont to approve a trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers</a>. The organization <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-news-nico-harrison-getting-fired">fired Harrison last Tuesday</a> following the team’s continued struggles.</p><p>According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, Harrison leveraged the Mavericks’ late-season surge in 2023–24 as the basis for selling Dumont on <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/47014061/inside-mavericks-power-struggle-nico-harrison-vs-mark-cuban" rel="noopener">his long-term vision</a>. After trade-deadline deals to acquire Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington — moves made only after a Kyle Kuzma deal fell through — Dallas went 16–4 to close the regular season and ultimately reached the NBA Finals as a No. 5 seed. At the time the acquisitions were made, the team was 28–23 and eighth in the Western Conference.</p><p>That finish was enough to persuade Dumont that Harrison had found a winning formula.</p><p>“Nico did a hell of a sales job,” one Mavericks official said. “He took credit for everything that was done. When Patrick asked questions — asked how we got Kyrie, how the draft happened, etc. — [Harrison] said he was the guy. We got on a roll and went to the Finals. Fool’s gold.”</p><h2><b>Nico Harrison bypassed Mark Cuban, controlled the narrative with Patrick Dumont</b></h2><p>Despite Dumont occasionally instructing Harrison to keep Mark Cuban involved in personnel decisions, sources said Harrison often ignored the directive. Communication between Cuban and Dumont reportedly became minimal during the team’s success, while Harrison increasingly isolated himself within the organization. He maintained a direct line to Dumont, which became his source of power.</p><p>“Nico built the moat and put up the fence and said, ‘I got this!’” one source familiar with the dynamic said. “Clearly, that was the wrong strategy.”</p><p>Sources throughout the franchise believed Harrison provided Dumont with only the information he wanted his boss to hear, not the complete picture — a particularly risky approach with Dumont still new to the NBA landscape.</p><p>“The one guy in basketball ops who had a pipeline to Dumont wasn’t giving him the straight scoop,” one team source said.</p><p>That internal dynamic ultimately positioned Harrison to push forward with the controversial trade that sent Doncic — a perennial MVP candidate still in his prime — to the Lakers. Rival executives widely viewed the return as poor value, especially in the absence of any trade request from Doncic or indications that he was looking to leave.</p><h2><b>Harrison framed Luka Doncic as long-term risk, pitched Anthony Davis as new Mavericks’ cornerstone</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Luka-Doncic-hugs-Dallas-Mavericks-forward-Anthony-Davis-after-the-game.jpg"><figcaption>© Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Harrison constructed his argument from a financial and health-based perspective. With Doncic eligible for a five-year, $345 million supermax extension in the summer, Harrison argued that such an investment would prove costly. He pointed to Doncic’s conditioning, off-court habits, and recurring calf strains as reasons to expect long-term physical decline.</p><p>There were also repeated disagreements between Doncic’s camp and Harrison about the handling of his injury recovery. Harrison reportedly portrayed those tensions to Dumont as a sign of Doncic’s wavering commitment to the franchise.</p><p>He further placed blame for the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-most-to-blame-for-nba-finals-loss-to-celtics">team’s five-game Finals loss to the Boston Celtics</a> on Doncic’s defensive deficiencies. Harrison instead pitched a new direction: building the league’s best defense around Anthony Davis, whom Harrison had longstanding ties to dating back to Davis’ teenage years in AAU.</p><p>“Defense wins championships,” Harrison said in rare public comments defending the trade.</p><p>Harrison emphasized the importance of secrecy, telling Dumont that any leaks could empower Doncic’s agent, Bill Duffy, to derail the deal. Looping in Cuban, Harrison warned, could risk exposure. Dumont agreed to keep the negotiations tightly controlled.</p><p>“No one else knew. No one else had to know. Dumont bought it, and that was all that mattered,” a source said.</p><p>“‘In Nico we trust’ — too much at the end of the day,” another source added, referencing Dumont’s now-infamous quote following the trade. “That quote has come back to haunt [Dumont].”</p><h2><b>Doncic thrives with Lakers as Mavs stumble</b></h2><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-luka-doncic-insane-mic-drop-playing-lebron-james">Doncic has since flourished with the Lakers</a>, leading them to an 11–4 record and the No. 4 seed in the West. He is averaging 34.6 points, nine assists, 8.5 rebounds, and 1.9 steals per game across 11 appearances.</p><p>Against the Utah Jazz on Tuesday night, Doncic tallied 37 points, 10 assists, five rebounds, and four steals while shooting 11-for-22 from the field and 13-for-16 from the free throw line in 34 minutes. The Lakers defeated Utah 140–126 to extend their winning streak to three games.</p><p>Los Angeles will face the Clippers (4–10) next on Tuesday at 11:00 p.m. ET on NBC Peacock as part of their ongoing NBA Cup schedule.</p><p>Meanwhile, the Mavericks dropped to 13th in the Western Conference following a 120–96 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday. They begin a three-game homestand with a matchup against the New York Knicks (8–5) on Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. ET.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Mavericks rumors: How Nico Harrison hoodwinked Patrick Dumont into Luka Doncic trade

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-rumors-dumont-interaction-led-to-doncic-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'Mavericks rumors: Negative Patrick Dumont interaction may have led to Luka Doncic trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/25061687.jpg"><figcaption>Jerome Miron-Imagn Images.</figcaption></figure><h1>Mavericks rumors: Negative Patrick Dumont interaction may have led to Luka Doncic trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-17T22:25:42-08:00">November 17th, 10:25pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-18T00:18:32-08:00">November 18th, 12:18am</time><address><a>Josh Davis</a>Josh Davis is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints with a focus on MLB. As the founder and creator of OutOfSightSports, Josh spearheads the development and expansion of an engaging social media platform, with a core focus on Twitter/X. A passionate sports writer, Josh is dedicated to delivering compelling content that connects fans and fuels vibrant sports conversations. His vision is to craft stories so vivid that fans feel like they’re standing at the plate or on the field.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Dallas Mavericks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Dallas Mavericks entered a new era last season, and a fresh round of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-rumors-bob-myers-replace-nico-harrison">Mavericks rumors</a> now points to a surprising factor behind the blockbuster Luka Doncic trade. A report circulating this week suggests a negative interaction between Doncic and team governor Patrick Dumont may have influenced the franchise’s decision. The speculation has centered on how internal tension, front office priorities, and shifting expectations collided during a pivotal stretch.</p><p>In a story written by LakersDaily’s Ashish Mathur, he <a href="https://lakersdaily.com/sources-luka-had-negative-interaction-with-patrick-dumont-2-days-before-trade/?fbclid=IwY2xjawOI29ZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETF5RTZPcVBGTHZaSElSOHZ4c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHgz3ovrnSM-d3F3DlvBCUuXfhRyleI-NveUKu74ouY17xvnkZSwU4tZHqW_9_aem_FVSaEkgVJWO3Juz-FgViRA" rel="noopener">detailed</a> how the 26-year-old superstar did not have a positive exchange with Dumont just two days before the deal was finalized. The interaction reportedly stayed on Doncic’s mind, and sources told the outlet he considered it one of the possible triggers that pushed the situation toward a breaking point. Mathur’s report also highlighted the comments that surfaced shortly after the Mavericks-Lakers trade became official.</p><p>Doncic grew “pissed off” when Dumont delivered the following comments to the Dallas Morning News once the trade became official, sources say.</p><p>“If you look at the greats in the league, the people you and I grew up with — [Michael] Jordan, [Larry] Bird, Kobe [Bryant], Shaq [O’Neal] — they worked really hard, every day, with a singular focus to win. And if you don’t have that, it doesn’t work. And if you don’t have that, you shouldn’t be part of the Dallas Mavericks.</p><p>“That’s who we want. I’m unwavering on this. The entire organization knows this. This is how I operate outside of basketball. This is the only way to be competitive and win. If you want to take a vacation, don’t do it with us.”</p><p>The report also noted that former GM Nico Harrison pushed aggressively for the trade and no longer wanted <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-news-owner-confesses-luka-doncic-trade-remorse-fan">the organization centered around Doncic</a>. With the team now struggling, Harrison recently dismissed, and the Mavericks falling to 4-11 after being blown out Monday night to the Minnesota Timberwolves, the long-term fallout continues to shape the franchise’s direction. The situation paints a complicated picture of how personality clashes, strong philosophies, and timing combined to create one of the league’s most stunning modern trades.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Mavericks rumors: Negative Patrick Dumont interaction may have led to Luka Doncic trade

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/brooklyn-nets/nba-rumors-nets-urged-to-throw-all-the-money-at-austin-reaves');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Nets urged to ‘throw all the money’ at Austin Reaves to steal guard from Lakers');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Austin-Reaves-1.jpg"><figcaption>Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Nets urged to ‘throw all the money’ at Austin Reaves to steal guard from Lakers</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-13T09:27:36-08:00">November 13th, 9:27am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-13T10:31:43-08:00">November 13th, 10:31am</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Brooklyn Nets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Brooklyn Nets are positioned to be a major player in free agency next summer. Following two seasons of tanking, the rebuilding squad will attempt to take a significant step forward in 2026-27.</p><p><a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/46918261/inside-unbelievable-241m-week-austin-reaves-los-angeles-lakers" rel="noopener">An Eastern Conference executive is adamant</a> that the Nets should sign Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves this summer to lead that charge.</p><p>“AR’s a stud,” the executive told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “If I were the Brooklyn Nets, I would throw all the money at him. He has shown when he gets the keys to the engine, he can produce.”</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-austin-reaves-joins-nba-greats-latest-feat-to-open-season">Reaves’ stellar performance</a> in the wake of early-season injuries to LeBron James and Luka Doncic has been the talk of the NBA, with the 27-year-old destined for unrestricted free agency. The Lakers guard is averaging a career-high 28.3 points and 8.3 assists on 47.0 percent shooting across nine appearances. He scored 51 points and 41 points during back-to-back matchups against the Sacramento Kings and Portland Trail Blazers.</p><h2>Could Nets pursue Lakers star Austin Reaves in 2026 free agency?</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Austin-Reaves-2.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-austin-reaves-not-obsessed-over-millions-on-next-contract">Reaves will be eligible to sign</a> a five-year, $241 million contract with the Lakers, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks. He can sign for up to four years, $178.5 million with a cap space team. The Nets are one of four teams — including the Chicago Bulls, Utah Jazz and Washington Wizards — projected to have over $40 million in space.</p><p>Brooklyn can open up more space, depending on its decisions on a pair of $6.25 million team options for Day’Ron Sharpe and Ziaire Williams. Sharpe and Reaves are both repped by Aaron Riley of the AMR Agency.</p><p>With the Nets owing an unprotected 2027 first-round pick swap to the Houston Rockets, they should be motivated to improve next season. Brooklyn could offer Reaves an opportunity to be the face of a team in the league’s biggest market.</p><p>Following a 1-10 start, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/brooklyn-nets/why-2025-2026-nba-drafts-most-important-nets-franchise-history">the Nets will have a chance to land a top pick</a> in a loaded 2026 draft. Which player they land next June will greatly impact their roster construction for the coming seasons.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Nets urged to ‘throw all the money’ at Austin Reaves to steal guard from Lakers

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-austin-reaves-not-obsessed-over-millions-on-next-contract');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: Austin Reaves ‘not obsessed’ over millions on next contract');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Austin-Reaves-15-brings-the-ball-up-the-court-during-the-second-quarter-against-the-Charlotte-Hornets.jpg"><figcaption>© Brian Westerholt-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: Austin Reaves ‘not obsessed’ over millions on next contract</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-12T11:11:29-08:00">November 12th, 11:11am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-12T11:11:29-08:00">November 12th, 11:11am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-luka-doncic-insane-start-not-seen-rick-barry-side-story-nico-harrison-demise">Los Angeles Lakers continue their strong start to the 2025-26 season</a> with an 8-3 record, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin revealed that guard Austin Reaves remains focused on winning rather than maximizing his next contract. Despite his breakout campaign and eligibility for a major payday, Reaves is reportedly “not obsessed” with earning every possible dollar in his next deal.</p><p>According to McMenamin’s report, the Lakers met virtually with Reaves and his representatives — agents Aaron Reilly and Reggie Berry of AMR Agency — on June 23, a day after the NBA Finals concluded. The 45-minute video conference included Lakers governor Jeanie Buss, general manager Rob Pelinka, and head coach JJ Redick. During the call, the organization formally offered Reaves a four-year, $89 million contract extension, the maximum they could extend under the collective bargaining agreement.</p><p>Reaves and his camp, however, declined the offer. The decision was expected by both sides, as Pelinka reportedly knew the guard would test the market for a deal that better reflected his value. Reaves and Redick exited the call early, leaving Buss, Pelinka, and his agents to discuss the team’s future direction.</p><h2><b>Austin Reaves prioritizes winning and loyalty to Lakers over massive payday</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Oct-26-2025-Sacramento-California-USA-Los-Angeles-Lakers-guard-Austin-Reaves-15-is-fouled-on-the-shot.jpg"><figcaption>© Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The proposed deal would have started at $19.5 million annually — a 2,000% raise from his $925,000 rookie salary after going undrafted and a 40% increase from his 2025-26 salary, the third year of his current four-year, $54 million contract. Even with that jump, the offer would have only made him the 24th highest-paid shooting guard in the league, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks.</p><p>Reaves, 27, is eligible for a five-year, $241 million extension with Los Angeles this summer or a four-year, $178.5 million contract elsewhere. Despite the potential financial windfall, sources told ESPN that Reaves is not driven by the pursuit of the largest possible deal, preferring stability and success in Los Angeles.</p><p>“I try not to think about it. Honestly,” Reaves told ESPN. “Even though the other extension was turned down, that doesn’t mean that I’m trying to go get a gigantic number that don’t make sense. I want to be here, I want to win. I want to do everything that can help this organization be better.”</p><h2><b>Reaves’ on-court dominance keeps LA rolling as LeBron James nears return</b></h2><p>Reaves’ stance contrasts with many of his peers in a rapidly growing financial landscape. Comparable shooting guards such as Jordan Poole and Tyler Herro signed extensions in 2022 that pay them roughly 20% of the salary cap. With the league’s next media rights deal projected to increase overall salary structures, that same percentage would equal about $33 million annually by 2026-27.</p><p>Meanwhile, Reaves continues to deliver on the court for Los Angeles. In eight games, he’s averaging 30.3 points, nine assists, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.5 steals while shooting 48% from the field and 32.4% from three. His leadership has been instrumental in keeping the Lakers competitive while LeBron James recovers from a sciatica injury.</p><p>ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Wednesday that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-takes-massive-step-toward-return-from-injury">James was assigned to the South Bay Lakers</a> to participate in his first full practice of the season, including 5-on-5 work, as he continues to ramp up for his return.</p><p>The Lakers will continue their five-game road trip Wednesday night <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-klay-thompson-picked-mavericks-over-lakers-play-luka-doncic-could-a-trade-happen">against the reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder</a> (11-1) at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: Austin Reaves ‘not obsessed’ over millions on next contract

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-klay-thompson-picked-mavericks-over-lakers-play-luka-doncic-could-a-trade-happen');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Klay Thompson picked Mavericks over Lakers to play with Luka Doncic. Could a trade happen now?');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Klay-Thompson-31-reacts-after-scoring-during-the-first-quarter-against-the-Milwaukee-Bucks.jpg"><figcaption>© Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Klay Thompson picked Mavericks over Lakers to play with Luka Doncic. Could a trade happen now?</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-12T10:14:58-08:00">November 12th, 10:14am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-12T10:14:58-08:00">November 12th, 10:14am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Dallas Mavericks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-news-nico-harrison-getting-fired">Dallas Mavericks’ struggles deepen following the firing of general manager</a> Nico Harrison, new details have surfaced regarding Klay Thompson’s free agency decision this past summer — one that could soon come full circle.</p><p>According to The Athletic, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-news-dallas-completes-klay-thompson-acquisition-in-historic-6-team-trade">Thompson chose to sign with the Mavericks</a> primarily to play alongside Luka Doncic rather than join LeBron James and Anthony Davis with the Los Angeles Lakers. In a collaborative report by Joe Vardon, Christian Clark, and Sam Amick, the outlet revealed that Thompson <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6800940/2025/11/12/dallas-mavericks-gm-nico-harrison-culture-workplace/" rel="noopener">turned down a richer offer</a> from the Lakers in favor of the chance to team up with Doncic and Kyrie Irving.</p><p>“As was reported at the time, the Lakers and Thompson discussed a four-year, $80 million deal in free agency that — if the Warriors cooperated in a sign-and-trade — would have dwarfed the three-year, $50 million deal the Mavericks would eventually give him,” the report read. “But the allure of Dončić’s greatness was a major pull, as was the chance to partner with Irving in the backcourt. When given the choice between teaming up with the Lakers’ duo of Davis and LeBron James or the Mavericks’ stars, Thompson made a calculated decision to go with the latter.”</p><p>The move was widely seen as a bold choice at the time, especially after <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-most-to-blame-for-nba-finals-loss-to-celtics">Dallas reached the 2024 NBA Finals, losing to the Boston Celtics</a> in five games. However, the landscape shifted dramatically when <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-news-bill-simmons-missed-nico-harrison-factor-luka-doncic-trade">Doncic was traded to the Lakers</a> last February in a blockbuster deal for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick.</p><h2><b>Mavericks weigh Klay Thompson trade options as Luka Doncic thrives with Lakers</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Klay-Thompson-31-and-Los-Angeles-Lakers-guard-Luka-Doncic.jpg"><figcaption>© Jerome Miron-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Now, with Dallas sitting at 3-8 and 14th in the Western Conference, Thompson’s decision has taken on new scrutiny. ClutchPoints insider Brett Siegel reported that the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/siegels-scoop-latest-ja-morant-trade-intel-grizzlies-drama">Mavericks are expected to evaluate potential trade scenarios</a> involving Thompson before the deadline.</p><p>“It is no secret that Harrison and the Mavericks’ front office will explore what return exists for Klay Thompson before the trade deadline, and several teams are monitoring Daniel Gafford’s status, sources said,” Siegel wrote. “Coincidentally enough, one of the teams with strong interest in Gafford dating back to last season is the Los Angeles Lakers.”</p><p>Thompson, 35, has struggled to find rhythm in his new environment. Through 10 games, he’s averaging 7.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, and two assists per game while shooting 31.4 percent from the field and 26.7 percent from three across 19.7 minutes. His production has fallen sharply from his final season with Golden State, when he averaged 17.9 points per game.</p><p>As for Dončić, the 26-year-old star has thrived in his first full season with Los Angeles. He is averaging 37.1 points, 9.4 rebounds, 9.1 assists, and 1.7 steals while shooting 49.1 percent from the field and 32.1 percent from beyond the arc, leading the Lakers to an 8-3 record and a fourth-place standing in the West.</p><p>The Mavericks open a three-game homestand Wednesday against the Phoenix Suns (6-5), while Doncic and the Lakers continue their five-game road trip with a matchup against the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder (11-1) at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Klay Thompson picked Mavericks over Lakers to play with Luka Doncic. Could a trade happen now?

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-could-la-reunite-luka-doncic-with-former-mavericks-teammate');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: Could LA reunite Luka Doncic with former Mavericks teammate?');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Luka-Doncic-77-moves-the-ball-against-San-Antonio-Spurs-guard-Stephon-Castle-5.jpg"><figcaption>© Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: Could LA reunite Luka Doncic with former Mavericks teammate?</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-07T10:20:49-08:00">November 7th, 10:20am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-07T10:20:49-08:00">November 7th, 10:20am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Dallas Mavericks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Los Angeles Lakers could look to reunite Luka Doncic with one of his former Dallas Mavericks teammates before the trade deadline. According to ClutchPoints NBA insider Brett Siegel, center Daniel Gafford — a key contributor to the Mavericks’ 2024 NBA Finals run — has <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/siegels-scoop-latest-ja-morant-trade-intel-grizzlies-drama">drawn interest from the Lakers as a potential midseason trade target</a>.</p><p>In Siegel’s report released Friday, he noted that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/dallas-mavericks/mavericks-news-jason-kidd-klay-thompson-off-bench-loss-pelicans">Dallas’ disappointing 2-6 start to the 2025-26 campaign</a> has led to speculation about whether general manager Nico Harrison and the Mavericks front office might explore selective trade options if their struggles persist.</p><p>“A 2-6 start to the season has many around the league wondering if Nico Harrison and the Dallas Mavericks will be selective sellers before the trade deadline in February if their struggles continue,” Siegel wrote. “While the Mavs rank as a top-five defensive team, they rank 30th in offensive rating this season. Defense wins championships, but you won’t win any game if you can’t score!”</p><p>Siegel added that the Mavericks are expected to evaluate their roster ahead of the trade deadline and could gauge the market for veteran guard Klay Thompson, as well as center Daniel Gafford, who has become a name to monitor around the league.</p><p>“It is no secret that Harrison and the Mavericks’ front office will explore what return exists for Klay Thompson before the trade deadline, and several teams are monitoring Daniel Gafford’s status, sources said,” Siegel reported. “The 27-year-old center recently signed a three-year, $60 million contract extension this offseason, but he remains trade eligible this season.”</p><h2><b>Lakers could look to reunite Luka Doncic with former Mavericks teammate Daniel Gafford</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Daniel-Gafford-21-looks-to-score-as-New-Orleans-Pelicans-center-Derik-Queen-22-defends.jpg"><figcaption>© Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>At present, the Mavericks are not in “panic mode,” according to Siegel, and are not yet actively shopping players. However, multiple teams, including the Lakers, are keeping a close watch on Gafford’s situation.</p><p>“Coincidentally enough, one of the teams with strong interest in Gafford dating back to last season is the Los Angeles Lakers, sources said. Could we see a reunion between Luka Doncic and Gafford in Los Angeles in February?” Siegel wrote.</p><p>Gafford, who played an instrumental role alongside Doncic during Dallas’ Finals run last season, has appeared in three games so far this year after missing time to start the campaign. The 27-year-old has averaged 12 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, 1.3 assists, and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 75% from the field in 22.3 minutes. In his most recent outing, he posted 15 points, eight rebounds, two blocks, and two steals on 6-for-8 shooting in 25 minutes.</p><p>As of now, Gafford remains with Dallas, which will face the Memphis Grizzlies (3-6) on Friday night before wrapping up its two-game road trip Saturday against the Washington Wizards (1-7).</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-luka-doncic-warning-nba-la-thrive-without-lebron-james">Lakers, meanwhile, continue to surge with a 7-2 record</a> behind Doncic’s early MVP-caliber play. Los Angeles will visit the Atlanta Hawks (4-4) on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET on NBA TV to open a five-game road trip. If trade discussions intensify ahead of February, the Lakers could emerge as a serious suitor for Gafford — potentially reuniting the two former Mavericks and further strengthening the team’s frontcourt rotation.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: Could LA reunite Luka Doncic with former Mavericks teammate?

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-austin-reaves-baseline-expected-30-million-new-contract');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: Austin Reaves’ ‘baseline’ expected to be $30 million on new contract');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Lakers-Austin-Reaves-celebrates-after-making-a-bucket.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: Austin Reaves’ ‘baseline’ expected to be $30 million on new contract</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-31T09:17:31-07:00">October 31st, 9:17am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-31T09:17:31-07:00">October 31st, 9:17am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-luka-doncic-upgraded-injury-report-for-nba-cup-opener">Los Angeles Lakers (3-2) prepare for their Friday night matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies</a> (3-2), a new report from ESPN suggests that guard Austin Reaves could be in line for one of the most lucrative contracts among non-All-Stars in the NBA.</p><p>According to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps and Brian Windhorst, league sources believe Reaves’ next deal will begin at no less than <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/46786710/nba-intel-execs-coaches-scouts-reaves-lakers-future-heat-new-offense" rel="noopener">$30 million per season</a>.</p><p>“The belief around the league is that $30 million per year is the absolute baseline for Reaves’ services,” the report stated. “There are currently 59 NBA players making at least that much.”</p><p>The 27-year-old guard has become the Lakers’ most productive player through the opening weeks of the 2025-26 season, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-chandler-parsons-argues-austin-reaves-surpassed-lebron-james">carrying the offense in the absence of LeBron James and Luka Doncic</a>. Reaves’ rise from undrafted free agent to potential nine-figure contract recipient underscores his rapid ascent within the organization and the league at large.</p><p>Reaves is currently averaging 34.2 points, 10 assists, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per game through five appearances while shooting 52.5 percent from the field, 38.5 percent from three, and 89.7 percent from the free-throw line. His breakout performance has positioned him not only as the Lakers’ leading scorer but also as one of the most valuable perimeter players in the Western Conference.</p><h2><b>Austin Reaves’ historic start boosts his value as Lakers eye long-term deal</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Lakers-guard-Luka-Doncic-left-and-guard-Austin-Reaves-15-interact.jpg"><figcaption>© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Another league executive told ESPN that Reaves’ current pace may taper off once James returns from his sciatica injury but expects both sides to prioritize a long-term deal.</p><p>“I don’t think he’s going to quite keep up this pace because LeBron will take away touches,” the executive said. “But he is good and the Lakers intend to keep him and he intends to stay, so my guess is it gets done.”</p><p>Under NBA salary cap projections, Reaves would be eligible for a four-year deal worth roughly $180 million from another team in free agency next summer. However, the Lakers could explore a five-year extension for a higher total value to ensure he remains in Los Angeles long-term.</p><p>Reaves’ performance has already placed him in rare company among Lakers guards. Earlier this week, he became the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-austin-reaves-accomplishes-la-feat-not-since-kobe-bryant-2005">first player since Kobe Bryant in 2005</a> to open a season with five consecutive 25-point games — a feat that highlights both his scoring consistency and importance to the team’s success.</p><p>James and Doncic are both expected to return in November, which should ease the offensive burden on Reaves. Still, his emergence as the Lakers’ most reliable option in their absence has strengthened his case for a major payday and reaffirmed his role as a foundational piece of the team’s future.</p><p>The Lakers will look to build on their early-season momentum when they face the Grizzlies on Friday at 9:30 p.m. ET on Prime Video before returning home Sunday to host the Miami Heat (3-2).</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: Austin Reaves’ ‘baseline’ expected to be $30 million on new contract

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-insider-notice-bad-lebron-james-vibes-warriors-game');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: Insider couldn’t help but notice bad LeBron James ‘vibes’ during Warriors game');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Lakers-All-Star-LeBron-James2.jpg"><figcaption>Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: Insider couldn’t help but notice bad LeBron James ‘vibes’ during Warriors game</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-22T20:19:07-07:00">October 22nd, 8:19pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-22T20:19:07-07:00">October 22nd, 8:19pm</time><address><a>Abdullah Imran</a>Abdullah Imran works as an Associate Editor for All Sports at ClutchPoints. He’s been a sports fan his entire life and enjoys writing about every sport. He has spent three years in sports journalism and loves analyzing games. In his free time, he very much enjoys binge-watching shows and playing video games.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-vanessa-natalia-bryant-opening-night-warriors">Los Angeles Lakers began their 2025–26 season</a> with a 119–109 loss to the Golden State Warriors, but the bigger story wasn’t the defeat; <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-disconnected-warriors-game">it was LeBron James’ demeanor on the sidelines</a>. For the first time in his 23-year career, the 40-year-old superstar missed an opening-night game, sitting out due to a sciatic back injury.</p><p>During the contest, cameras repeatedly showed James sitting quietly on the bench, rarely clapping, cheering, or communicating with teammates, even as Luka Doncic erupted for 43 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists.</p><p>Lakers insider Jovan Buha <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yuK0aCX08w&amp;t=1s" rel="noopener">addressed the matter</a> on his “Buha’s Block” podcast, saying:</p><p>“Yeah, I mean I don’t wanna play armchair psychologist here, so I’m — I wanna refrain from too much speculation. But the vibes with that situation have not been the best, I’ll say. So, again, I don’t really wanna go too much down that road, but yeah, I mean, I thought there were times just looking at the huddle or looking at the bench that he wasn’t as engaged as he typically is when he’s out.</p><p>“You just never know when someone is having a bad day or something’s going — whatever. You don’t wanna project onto people what you think they are feeling or acting like. But just in the observations I made of the body language, was not great, and I do think it was a bit different than what it has been in the past in this same situation of him being out.”</p><p>James’ detachment comes amid a major transition within the organization. The Lakers are now clearly shifting their offensive identity around Luka Doncic, who was acquired in the blockbuster deal that sent Anthony Davis to Dallas. Doncic started his first full season in Los Angeles with a dominant performance. However, the rest of the team failed to provide adequate support. Austin Reaves chipped in late, yet no other Laker scored more than 10 points. Deandre Ayton, acquired in the offseason, managed just 10 points on seven shot attempts while committing four turnovers.</p><p>During the preseason, media members observed limited interaction between James and Doncic on the bench, a contrast to LeBron’s previous camaraderie with Davis. However, at media day, he presented himself as relaxed and engaged, unfazed by speculation that the organization was shifting its priorities toward Doncic.</p><p>It may have been nothing more than irritation from not playing, still, the energy he gave off didn’t go unnoticed in Los Angeles.</p><p>The 4x NBA Champion’s agent, Rich Paul, made a cryptic statement in June suggesting that both he and LeBron were evaluating the “best situation” for a championship run. Around the same time, reports surfaced that the Lakers neither offered nor discussed an extension with James, who ultimately exercised his $51.4 million player option for the 2025–26 season.</p><p>James’ injury timeline remains uncertain, though he is likely to miss 11 to 14 games, possibly returning in mid-to-late November. The Lakers will face Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves next on Friday.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: Insider couldn’t help but notice bad LeBron James ‘vibes’ during Warriors game

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/nba-rumors-jewish-holiday-held-up-luka-doncic-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: How a Jewish holiday held up the Luka Doncic trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Lakers-guard-Luka-Doncic-77-reacts.jpg"><figcaption>© Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: How a Jewish holiday held up the Luka Doncic trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-21T07:22:49-07:00">October 21st, 7:22am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-21T07:24:45-07:00">October 21st, 7:24am</time><address><a>Rishabh Bhatnagar</a>Rishabh is a seasoned NBA and sports journalist and editor with over seven years of experience working for reputed organizations. A novelist first and foremost, he has written three fiction books. His high threshold of knowledge combined with his writing skills gives him the ability to write uniquely insightful pieces across basketball, soccer, cricket, lawn tennis, eSports, and a variety of other sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Dallas Mavericks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Luka Doncic’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-luka-doncic-sounds-off-on-mavericks-trade-in-revenge-tour-article">trade to the Los Angeles Lakers shook the entire NBA</a>, with the longtime Dallas Mavericks hero arriving in LA back in February this year. The Lakers acquired Dončić (plus Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris), while Dallas received Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick.</p><p>Now, it turns out that an unlikely Jewish holiday in the form of Shabbat played a major role in holding up the trade. Per noted NBA journalist Yaron Weitzman‘s book A Hollywood Ending: The Dreams and Drama of the LeBron Lakers, Mavs GM Nico Harrison <a href="https://forward.com/culture/books/777355/luka-doncic-trade-shabbat-lakers-book/" rel="noopener">had only told</a> Lakers GM Rob Pelinka about Doncic’s availability, via Forward.</p><p>Pelinka in turn only informed Lakers owner Jeanie Buss to avoid leaks that could potentially collapse the talks. However, the Lakers first needed to do a separate trade with the Utah Jazz in order to make space for the Slovenian international.</p><p>The Jazz took back Jalen Hood-Schifino and two future second-rounders as part of the three-team framework which also involved the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clippers received Drew Eubanks and Patty Mills in exchange of PJ Tucker, Mo Bamba and other assets, which in turn allowed the Jazz to complete the trade with the Lakers.</p><p>However, a final administrative snag paused the multi-team chain until after Saturday night: Patty Mills’ agent, Steven Heumann, was observing Shabbat and had to attest to contract terms before a related deal could be completed.</p><p>The franchises involved therefore waited until after sundown Saturday to finish the adjacent deal with both Pelinka and Harrison agreeing to maintain silence on the negotiations until then. One of the most stunning trades ever made in the NBA, Doncic’s arrival was eventually confirmed on Sunday, February 2, after being in the works for almost a week.</p><p>While all the franchises understandably moved quickly to get the deals done, the stakes were especially high for Pelinka and company, considering the number of teams that could have tried to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/luka-doncic-bold-predictions-lakers-season">hijack the trade had they known about Doncic’s availability</a>.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: How a Jewish holiday held up the Luka Doncic trade

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-russell-westbrook-ghosted-lebron-james-vegas-kyrie-irving-trade-betrayal');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: Russell Westbrook ghosted LeBron James in Vegas over Kyrie Irving trade betrayal');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Lakers-LeBron-James-Russell-Westbrook1.jpg"><figcaption>Bill Streicher-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: Russell Westbrook ghosted LeBron James in Vegas over Kyrie Irving trade betrayal</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-20T10:30:18-07:00">October 20th, 10:30am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-20T10:30:18-07:00">October 20th, 10:30am</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers’ 2022-23 campaign, Russell Westbrook felt betrayed by All-Star LeBron James amid trade rumors that LeBron was pushing for a reunion with Kyrie Irving. The only problem at the time was fitting Westbrook into the deal, which was a move that the Brooklyn Nets weren’t interested in making at the time. Ahead of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-stat-projection-basketball-reference">James’ 23rd NBA season in 2025-26</a>, he’s still chasing his second championship with the Lakers.</p><p>James was interested in swapping Westbrook, his Lakers teammate at the time, for Irving, which got back to Russell. It’s what led to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-the-bothering-truth-behind-russell-westbrook-snubbing-lebron-james-in-sl-revealed" rel="noopener">an awkward noninteraction between James and Westbrook</a> at a Summer League game in July, per Yaron Weitzman.</p><p>“The scene became the talk of the night. Side-by-side images contrasting how LeBron and Westbrook had interacted at summer league the previous year—they’d entered the building together and sat next to each other—made the rounds on social media. The noninteraction was red meat for talking heads. It also sparked concerns within the team’s new coaching staff,” Weitzman wrote.</p><p>“We knew that we’d have to bring Westbrook off the bench eventually because things weren’t a good fit,” a Lakers coach said. “But seeing that play out that night it was like, ‘Oh, these mother******* aren’t even talking to each other.’”</p><p>Irving was entering the final year of his contract, a player option worth $36.9 million, and wanted an extenstion, which the Nets were not willing to do given Irving missed chunks of the regular season, and refused to get a COVID vaccine. He was also suspended for promoting an antisemetic documentary on social media. Brooklyn was not willing to extend his deal. Therefore, Kyrie asked for a trade, with the Lakers mentioned as one of his preferred destinations.</p><p>However, it didn’t get him any closer to LeBron and the Lakers.</p><h2><b>Nets, Lakers reportedly discussed a Kyrie Irving trade</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Lakers-LeBron-James-Russell-Westbrook.jpg"><figcaption>Rob Gray-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Lakers never came close to poaching Irving from the Nets in exchange for Russell Westbrook. The trade attempt also fractured Lakers All-Star LeBron James’ relationship with Westbrook.</p><p>“Negotiations between the Lakers and Nets went nowhere. Pelinka never showed any real interest in Irving. And even if he had, the Nets had no desire to take Westbrook back,” Weitzman wrote. “Irving picked up his option and remained in Brooklyn, but by then the damage was done. Because of the NBA’s salary-matching rules, the only way for the Lakers to acquire Irving would have been by dealing Westbrook.</p><p>“Westbrook knew this, and he knew that LeBron did as well. Meaning that no matter what LeBron said in public, the reality was clear: He was pushing for the Lakers to ship Westbrook out.”</p><p>Westbrook was ultimately traded to the Jazz in Feburary, 2023.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: Russell Westbrook ghosted LeBron James in Vegas over Kyrie Irving trade betrayal

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-rumors-russell-westbrook-called-out-lebron-james-fake-st-teammate-bizarre-will-smith-incident');   ga('set', 'title', 'Lakers rumors: Russell Westbrook called out LeBron James’ ‘fake s**t’ to teammate after bizarre Will Smith incident');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/James-and-Westbrook.jpg"><figcaption>Rob Gray-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Lakers rumors: Russell Westbrook called out LeBron James’ ‘fake s**t’ to teammate after bizarre Will Smith incident</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-20T09:37:56-07:00">October 20th, 9:37am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-20T09:37:56-07:00">October 20th, 9:37am</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University alum from Atlanta who graduated with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Celebrity</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Los Angeles Lakers are currently preparing for the upcoming 2025-26 season, in which they will begin the season with <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-ripped-lou-williams-setting-bad-example-decision-2-0-fakeout">LeBron James on the sidelines</a>. It’s been a steady climb up for the Lakers over the last few years since their disastrous 2021-22 season, in which <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-russell-westbrook-savagely-ghosts-lakers-career">Russell Westbrook was their point guard</a> and they missed the playoffs altogether.</p><p>It became evident quickly to viewers that Westbrook and James didn’t have great synergy as teammates, and recently, Yaron Weitzman of The Ringer reported <a href="https://www.theringer.com/2025/10/20/nba/lebron-james-russell-westbrook-will-smith-lakers-practice-photo" rel="noopener">on an incident</a> during the early portion of the 2022-23 season that apparently pulled them further apart.</p><p>It all took place when actor Will Smith visited the Lakers’ practice facility to speak to the team. As Smith was getting a tour of the facility prior to meeting the players, James and co-star Anthony Davis apparently walked out of the room, with James saying, “Y’all got this.'”</p><p>When Westbrook questioned what was going on, teammate Patrick Beverley informed him, that “Them two guys can do whatever the f*** they want. They won a championship.”<i><br></i></p><p>Then-Lakers head coach Darvin Ham then entered the room, went and brought back James and Davis, and Smith finally came in to spoke to the team, at which point Westbrook began to see through James’ facade.</p><p>“LeBron was first. He had a question, he said. Smith answered. Then LeBron had another question. And another after that and another after that and another after that. On and on he went, stretching what was supposed to be a 30-minute session into nearly an hour,” reported Weitzman.</p><p>“I hate that fake s***,” Westbrook told a teammate.</p><p>Overall, the incident was a good encapsulation of just how tumoltuous the Westbrook era truly was for the Lakers.</p><h2><b>A rough time for the Lakers</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Darvin-Ham-interacts-with-the-staff.jpg"><figcaption>Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>As previously mentioned, the Los Angeles Lakers ended up missing the playoffs altogether in 2021-22. The following year, they would eventually trade Westbrook and climb back and make it all the way to the Western Conference Finals, followed by first round exits in 2024 and 2025.</p><p>This year, Los Angeles is hoping that the first full season with Luka Doncic will produce fruitful results.</p><p>The Lakers kick off their season on Tuesday against the Golden State Warriors.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Lakers rumors: Russell Westbrook called out LeBron James’ ‘fake s**t’ to teammate after bizarre Will Smith incident

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-knicks-viewed-as-lebron-james-likeliest-destination-if-he-asks-for-lakers-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Knicks viewed as LeBron James’ likeliest destination if he asks for Lakers trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/LeBron-James-Second-Decision-draws-Neymar-reaction.jpg"><figcaption>David Gonzales-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Knicks viewed as LeBron James’ likeliest destination if he asks for Lakers trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-17T07:52:54-07:00">October 17th, 7:52am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-17T07:52:54-07:00">October 17th, 7:52am</time><address><a>Zachary Weinberger</a>Zachary Weinberger joined ClutchPoints in October 2023 as a Miami Heat reporter as well as an Associate Editor. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2022 after covering the school's athletic programs since his freshman year at the FAU University Press, where he was a Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He then covered FAU Sports for The Palm Beach Post.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>With <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/nba-rumors-lebron-james-not-connected-global-basketball-venture-maverick-carter-just-bailed-on">the rumors surrounding LeBron James</a> and his status with the Los Angeles Lakers this upcoming season, some analysts are theorizing about possible teams that could acquire him in a trade. As <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-injury-timeline-update-patient-approach">James is taking a patient approach with his injury</a> for the Lakers, Bobby Marks and Kevin O’Connor discuss the New York Knicks as a potential landing spot.</p><p>On O’Connor’s self-titled podcast, he would ask Marks, “If LeBron James asks out, his most likely destination is blank,” leading to the salary cap expert differentiating the results between the star being bought out or if it was through a trade. Via a trade, Marks’ <a href="https://x.com/KevinOConnor/status/1978910470892306531" rel="noopener">first team that he mentions</a> is the Knicks, mentioning the contracts they have like Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, and Mikal Bridges.</p><p>“If it was a straight trade, you always think New York potentially, they do have the contracts, whether it be the Towns deal, OG, and Bridges, whatever that group, I think would probably lean back towards New York,” Marks said.</p><p>O’Connor would agree that New York would be the team to trade for James as it “makes sense” through such aspects as fit on the roster and for the salary.</p><p>“Yeah, I think I’d say the Knicks for sure,” O’Connor said. “I mean, I’d say Knicks number one, and then everybody else, if he were to be traded midseason, the Knicks makes sense, for salary purposes, for roster fit purposes, for what they could desire, what they feel like they might need to take a leap.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">If LeBron James asks out, his most likely destination is ________.<a href="https://twitter.com/BobbyMarks42?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BobbyMarks42</a> and I had the same answer for this fill in the blank. 🗽 <a href="https://t.co/x2tcC77YJc">https://t.co/x2tcC77YJc</a> <a href="https://t.co/98IcmoELiN">pic.twitter.com/98IcmoELiN</a></p><p>— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnor) <a href="https://twitter.com/KevinOConnor/status/1978910470892306531?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>LeBron James could be the Knicks’ ‘savior”</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/LeBron-James-revisits-surprise-in-activity-he-hasnt-done-in-16-years-1.jpg"><figcaption>David Gonzales-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>While other analysts ponder how <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-brian-windhorst-hints-lebron-james-trade-la-struggles-early">realistic a Lakers trade involving James would be</a>, the Knicks do make a lot of sense to O’Connor, going from one huge franchise to the other. Besides the fit and salary, O’Connor would bring up the attention that it would bring, saying that James could be a “savior” for the team if he brought them to the NBA Finals.</p><p>“So I’d say the Knicks also for LeBron,” O’Connor said. “I mean, it’s Madison Square Garden. He’s always calling it his favorite arena; he could be a quote-unquote savior, you know, if he does help take them to a championship for the first time in decades. So there’s that with him as well. Can you imagine that, LeBron James traded midseason to the New York Knicks? If Shams drops that bomb, it might exceed the Luka trade last year.”</p><p>At any rate, it remains to be seen if James will be traded this season as Los Angeles opens the regular season on Oct. 21 against the Golden State Warriors.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

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