The Los Angeles Lakers are among the three teams outside Jimmy Butler‘s preferred landing spots “quietly mentioned in league circles” as potential suitors, according to Clutchpoints’ Brett Siegel.
However, Siegel was quick to add that a Butler trade to the Lakers “is nothing more than fan fiction at this point.”
“Los Angeles doesn’t appear to have the six-time All-Star on their radar, according to league sources. Instead, the Lakers are focusing their attention on adding frontcourt help and two-way wings next to LeBron] James and Anthony Davis. Los Angeles does not want to bring in another hefty salary like Butler’s at this juncture,” Siegel wrote.
While Butler could potentially add star power to the Lakers and form a new Big Three with Davis and James, it would also hamper their financial flexibility to surround them with a capable supporting cast to contend in the Western Conference.
Butler has a $52.4 million player option for next season, which he is not inclined to pick up, per ESPN’s Shams Charania. Butler is seeking a two-year, $110 million extension from the Miami Heat, which they did not offer in the offseason.
Charania reported Butler’s preferred landing spots are either of the two Texas teams — Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks — along with the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns.
Those four teams crowd the Lakers’s playoff chances in the Western Conference.
A potential Big Three of Butler, Davis and James would cost the Lakers more than $150 million, which undoubtedly would put them in the second apron filling out the rest of their roster with veteran minimum signings.
Unless James declines his $52 million player option for next season and re-signs for a substantial paycut next season, Butler in Lakers uniform in the immediate future would remain just a fan fiction.
Lakers Unlikely to Trade for Star
While the Lakers are expected to be active buyers as the February 6 trade deadline approaches, they are unlikely to make a splashy move.
According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Lakers “are not anticipated to be heavily in the mix for Miami’s Jimmy Butler, New Orleans’ Brandon Ingram or Chicago’s Zach LaVine.”
Butler, Ingram and LaVine are the biggest names who could be traded before February 6.
Buha added the Lakers have been eyeing “a tough, physical, defensive-minded center, a big 3-and-D wing who complements Davis and James as a starter/closer and a big, quick, athletic guard with point-of-attack defensive capabilities.”
The Lakers have two future first-round picks (2029 and 2031) and pick swaps to utilize in the trade market.
Jerami Grant’s Asking Price Drops
A cheaper alternative for the Lakers is Portland Trail Blazers’ Jerami Grant.
The Trail Blazers have recently softened their previous hardline stance on their asking price for Grant, according to Forbes’ Evan Sidery.
“Portland would be willing to part with Grant for one first-round pick and a promising prospect instead of two future first-round selections,” Sidery wrote in a post on X.
Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report reported in July that the Blazers were asking for the Lakers’ 2029 and 2031 first-round draft picks.
But if the Trail Blazers lower their asking price to a package built around one of the Lakers first-round picks and Rui Hachimura, then a deal could be made, according to Highkin.
Former LA Daily reporter Anthony Irwin, now with Clutchpoins, reported that the Lakers were unwilling to meet Portland’s demand for Grant because of two factors.
“League sources cite his contract and potential reluctance to take on a lesser role on a winning team as concerns for why the Lakers and other teams haven’t wanted to meet that price,” Irwin wrote at the time.
The 30-year-old Grant is entering the second season of a five-year deal worth $160 million with a $36.4 million player option for the 2027-28 season.
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