Perimeter defense has been one of the Lakers’ clearest weaknesses for several seasons, and the trade pitches to fix it kept coming after camp opened. The players disagree that it’s still a problem. On Oct. 1, Jake LaRavia warned opponents, “We got some problems this year,” and pointed to Ziaire Williams, Adou Thiero, Matisse Thybulle and Quentin Grimes as the reason.
The roster count is what could actually force a trade. Rob Pelinka said that “there’s also consolidation trades that can still be looked at, trading two guys out, bringing one in.” Two proposals use that kind of deal to add a defender.
The Ideas on the Table
1. Derrick Jones Jr. A Heavy proposal uses a four-team deal. The Lakers would receive Derrick Jones Jr., the Mavericks would receive Dalton Knecht and cash, the Clippers would receive Daniel Gafford, and the Bulls would receive Jake LaRavia and cash. Jones is on an expiring $10.4M salary. Last month Heavy.com’s Sai Mohan presented a simpler two-team version for the same player.
2. Herb Jones. A separate Heavy framework has the Lakers taking the Pelicans forward and sending out Jarred Vanderbilt as the matching salary. Per Heavy, Jones is set to earn approximately $14.9 million during the 2026-27 season, while Vanderbilt will make $13.2 million.
Most of the other Lakers pitches going around, like Buddy Hield from Chicago or a 10-player Kyle Kuzma deal, are about shooting or the roster count. Neither is about defense.
Only One Target Is Actually Gettable
The Clippers might actually move Jones Jr. ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel said “They’re going to be looking to dump some salary between now and training camp and start of the season” and specifically identified Jones as a player who could be involved in those discussions. He’s also blocked: LA has Ingram, Rui Hachimura, Max Strus, and Gradey Dick, along with Jones, to fill two frontcourt positions.
The trouble is what the Lakers give up. The deal sends out LaRavia, one of their own wing defenders, so they’d be swapping a wing for a wing. That’s a strange use of a two-for-one when the Lakers have an overabundance of wings and lack frontcourt depth. Jones can play power forward, which helps a little. Pulling off a four-team deal also takes a lot of coordination, and the salary matching across all four teams is approximate.
Herb Jones is mechanically possible, but the price doesn’t work. According to The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer, the Pelicans want two first-round picks in trade talks surrounding Jones. The Lakers already spent most of their picks this summer. They used nearly every asset available, trading draft picks for center Walker Kessler. Vanderbilt and no first-rounders isn’t what New Orleans has asked for. Jones also carries four years, $82 million, including player option, which is a lot of money for a player whose shot has come and gone.
The Likeliest Move Is a Cut
The Lakers won’t trade for a perimeter defender before opening night. The roster crunch will be solved somewhere else.
Siegel’s reporting points that way. Consolidation trades have been looked at “quite a bit” this offseason, with Dalton Knecht and Jaden Hardy viewed as the two players most likely to be involved in such a deal. If the Lakers can’t find a trade they like, Siegel reports that Knecht and Hardy would also be the players most at risk of simply being waived before opening night. The one player he named as a fit, Bulls big man Jalen Smith, is a frontcourt player, not a wing stopper. Even so, there’s no indication, however, that the Lakers and Bulls are actually discussing such a trade.
So the likeliest outcome is that Knecht or Hardy gets waived, or goes out in a small deal for a big man. The perimeter defense will be left to the group LaRavia is talking up. Kessler has backed that group publicly, and the first day of camp reportedly went well on the perimeter. The Lakers will want to see that hold up in real games before they spend anything else.
Derrick Jones Jr. is the name to remember for February. He’s on an expiring deal, the Clippers have too many forwards, and he already played well next to Luka Dončić in Dallas. If the wings don’t hold up by the deadline, he’s the realistic target. For now, the Lakers’ bigger hole is in the frontcourt.
Source: ClutchPoints
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