LOS ANGELES — It all started in a recent episode of Game Over with the Max Kellerman and Rich Paul podcastwhen the agent — LeBron James’ agent — suggested the Lakers talk to Memphis about a trade for All-Star and DPOY Jaren Jackson Jr., with Los Angeles sending fan favorite Austin Reaves to Tennessee.
LeBron distanced himself from it on Tuesday, speaking to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin as he left the arena.
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“I think you all know by now, Rich is his own man and what Rich says is not a direct reflection of me and how I feel. And I hope people know that. I hope people know that and if they’re not supposed to know that, then I don’t know what to tell them.”
A number of teams have their eyes on Jaren Jackson Jr. and whether Memphis could make him available following a Ja Morant trade. At this point, the Grizzlies are rejecting all such investigations, league sources told NBC Sports. The perception from other teams is that the Grizzlies aren’t ready to tear this thing down and rebuild it. They figure they have a good backing group led by JJJ, and if they can land another star, they could be back in the mix in the West.
LeBron needs to distance himself from the comments for locker room reasons, but Rich Paul is right. The Lakers are revamping their roster after Luka Doncic was offered to them, and with that, they need an elite two-way center who sets strong screens and can drive hard to the rim. Jackson fits that bill, and he can do more on offense. He would be a great fit for the Lakers, and if the price was Reaves (probably with an unprotected first-round pick), they should jump on it.
The reality is that Jackson is unavailable and this summer, Reaves is going to receive a massive, well-deserved raise. He played at an All-Star level when healthy and showed he could carry the offense while Doncic was out. Reaves is a fan favorite, he loves playing in Los Angeles and the Lakers shouldn’t consider trading him unless the return is simply too good to pass up. It’s unlikely, which is why next season we’ll almost certainly see Reaves still in a Lakers uniform and Jackson in Grizzlies colors.
