![\"Lakers,](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2237022253-e1769276581479.jpg\")
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Lakers head coach JJ Redick, left, and Rob Pelinka, President of Basketball Operations and General Manager, arrive for press conference to discuss Lakers 2025-26 season at the UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo on September 25, 2025. <\/p>\n
The Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> have reportedly re-engaged the New Orleans on a possible trade for All-Defensive wing Herbert Jones<\/a>.<\/p>\n According to insider Evan Sidery, the Detroit Pistons<\/a> and Indiana Pacers<\/a> have also expressed strong interest in Jones, one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cTeams continue to call the Pelicans<\/a> on All-Defense wing Herb Jones during trade season,\u201d Sidery reported on X.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe Lakers, Pacers and Pistons are among the teams who have recently checked in on Jones. It would take a significant package of assets for New Orleans to even consider moving Jones.\u201d<\/p>\n Further to Sidery\u2019s point, several insiders have previously reported that the Pelicans are seeking two unprotected first-round picks and a young rotational player for Jones.<\/p>\n Lakers Trade Target: Herbert Jones<\/p>\n The Lakers, who own only one tradeable first-round pick, technically can\u2019t match the Pelicans\u2019 reported asking price<\/a>. But that hasn\u2019t stopped the franchise from making repeated inquiries about Jones. Per multiple insiders, the Lakers first checked about Jones in early December, nearly a month before he even became trade-eligible.<\/p>\n To that end, The Athletic\u2019s Dan Woike<\/a> reported earlier that no player has been linked more to the Lakers by rival scouts and executives than Jones, with buzz around the 3-and-D wing and the Lakers dating back to the start of training camp. And as the season progressed, the Lakers, who rank 25th in defensive rating<\/a>, became more aggressive in pursuing wing defenders such as Jones to fix their biggest issue: perimeter defense.<\/p>\n Lakers Trade Deadline Plans<\/p>\n Besides Herbert Jones, the Lakers have reportedly expressed interest in Miami Heat\u2019s Andrew Wiggins, Pelicans\u2019 Yves Missi<\/a>, Dallas Mavericks<\/a>\u2018 Daniel Gafford<\/a>, Brooklyn Nets\u2019 Nic Claxton, Sacramento Kings\u2019 Keon Ellis and Charlotte Hornets<\/a>\u2018 Miles Bridges.<\/p>\n ESPN\u2019s Dave McMenamin has also floated names such as Denver Nuggets<\/a>\u2018 Peyton Watson<\/a> and Cleveland Cavaliers\u2019 De\u2019Andre Hunter<\/a> as possible Lakers trade targets. Some have also floated Golden State Warriors<\/a>\u2018 Jonathan Kuminga as a target.<\/p>\n The Lakers can offer the expiring contracts of Rui Hachimura<\/a>,\u00a0Gabe Vincent,<\/a> Maxi Kleber<\/a> and second-year wing Dalton Knecht in potential trades, to go with their only tradeable first-round pick in 2031 or 2032. Alas, players such as Hachimura and Knecht have reportedly not garnered much interest<\/a> around the league, while their only trade asset is not up for grabs unless a blockbuster trade is in the works.<\/p>\n The Athletic\u2019s Dan Woike<\/a> explained earlier this month that the Lakers are unlikely to part with their first-rounder due to their ambitious plans for the 2026 offseason, when Giannis Antetokounmpo could become available.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we\u2019re speaking in a technical sense, the Lakers\u2019 2032 first-round pick is probably their most valuable trade asset,\u201d Woike wrote.<\/p>\n \u201cHowever, trading that pick would lock the team\u2019s ability to trade the 2031 pick now and the 2033 pick this summer. So, yeah, the 2032 pick probably isn\u2019t going anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n If the Lakers part with their first-rounder before the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline, they\u2019d have very limited draft assets to use in a major deal over the summer.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tSai Mohan<\/a> covers the NBA for Heavy.com. Based in Portugal, Sai is a seasoned sports writer with nearly two decades of publishing experience, including bylines at Yardbarker, FanSided’s Hoops Habit, International Business Times, Hindustan Times and more. More about Sai Mohan<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Lakers\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Lakers head coach JJ Redick, left, and Rob Pelinka, President of Basketball Operations and General Manager, arrive…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":435881,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[574],"tags":[64,63,726,85],"class_list":["post-435880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-basketball","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-basketball","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=435880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435880\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/435881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=435880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=435880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=435880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}