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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 21: Bronny James #9 of the Los Angeles Lakers warms up before a season opening game between the Golden State Warriors and the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena on October 21, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Harry How\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
The Los Angeles Lakers offseason has been defined as much by who they lost as who they have added. LeBron James\u2019<\/a> departure officially pushed Los Angeles into the Luka Doncic<\/a> era. Rui Hachimura<\/a> also walked in free agency, leaving the Lakers noticeably thinner on the wing after already lacking size for much of last season.<\/p>\n Finding another starting-caliber forward has quickly become one of Rob Pelinka\u2019s biggest priorities, as evidenced by the Lakers\u2019 ongoing pursuit of free agent star Jonathan Kuminga<\/a>.<\/p>\n One player who has frequently surfaced in Lakers speculation is Dallas Mavericks<\/a> forward P.J. Washington<\/a>. Although no serious talks between the two teams have materialized, one proposed three-team trade would send Washington to Los Angeles while shipping Bronny James<\/a> to the Cleveland Cavaliers<\/a>.<\/p>\n Proposed Lakers Trade Moves Bronny James and Adds P.J. Washington GettyPORTLAND, OREGON \u2013 NOVEMBER 03: Bronny James #9 of the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> looks on against the Portland Trail Blazers<\/a> during the first half at Moda Center on November 03, 2025 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Steph Chambers\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n In the proposal, the Lakers receive Washington, while Cleveland acquires Jarred Vanderbilt<\/a> and Bronny James. Dallas lands Max Strus<\/a> along with a 2032 first-round pick swap and three second-round picks.<\/p>\n Washington spent the last two-plus seasons playing alongside Doncic in Dallas before the Slovenian\u2019s blockbuster move to Los Angeles. (Sorry for bringing it up a gazllionth time, Mavs fans.)\u00a0<\/p>\n During that stretch, Washington served as the Mavericks\u2019 most dependable two-way forwards and someone who was often the beneficiary of one of those \u201cLuka Magic\u201d passes that led to wide open 3-pointers.<\/p>\n While the Doncic reunion factor might make this trade more attractive for L.A., Washington would simply be a clean fit in the Lakers system. Washington would fill the vacancy at the wing position and give Los Angeles another trustable player to log heavy minutes.<\/p>\n Would the Mavericks Actually Trade P.J. Washington? GettyP.J. Washington #25 of the Dallas Mavericks dribbles the ball against the Dallas Mavericks during the second quarter at American Airlines Center on April 09, 2025 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Sam Hodde\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n Washington has become an important piece of Dallas\u2019 rotation since arriving from the Charlotte Hornets<\/a> in 2024. But according to NBA<\/a> insider Jake Fischer, the Mavs are moving toward making all their veterans not named Kyrie Irving<\/a> available for trade. Washington is by no means a major needle-mover, but the 14.2 points and seven rebounds per game he registered last season show he is one of teh better complementary forwards in the league.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Max Strus would give the Mavericks a capable perimeter shooter on an expiring contract, while the additional draft capital would give Dallas a way to load up their asset clip in exchange for Irving, the still-elite but aging (and injury prone) guard.<\/p>\n The Cavaliers, on the other hand, would add some defense in Vanderbilt while bringing Ohio native Bronny James closer to home. And, who knows, maybe James to Cleveland would lure this other named James.<\/p>\n If the Lakers fail to work out a deal with Kuminga, Washington might be a strong secondary option. But Kuminga, the 23-year-old former lottery pick, would be the sexier acquisition.\u00a0<\/p>\n Kuminga and the Lakers are stuck in negotiations, but the former Warriors<\/a> star may be holding off on signing a contract until LeBron James makes his free agency decision, according to reports. L.A. offer Kuminga a deal worth $10 million per year, which the forward declined, according to reports. Lakers insider Jovan Buha reported Kuminga is seeking a deal that pays him at least $15 million annually.<\/p>\n Can the Lakers meet that? It\u2019s possible. But the franchise could pivot to a Washington trade otherwise.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAdel Ahmad<\/a> Adel is a writer with over five years of experience covering the NBA. His work has appeared on various media platforms, both national and local. More about Adel Ahmad<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 21: Bronny James #9 of the Los Angeles Lakers warms up before…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":401988,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[48,52,51,47,50,49],"class_list":["post-401987","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401987","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=401987"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401987\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/401988"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=401987"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=401987"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=401987"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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