The Los Angeles Lakers have made no significant additions this offseason, but the organization known for acquiring big-name talent has the assets to wait and attack when the moment is perfect.
The Cleveland Cavaliers were one of the Lakers’ top prospective trade partners before the summer, owing to an apparent clash of styles in the backcourt between superstar Donovan Mitchell and regular player Darius Garland. Mitchell could have forced the Cavs to trade him, but instead he chose to sign a contract extension.
That left Garland alone on the trade block, or so most national NBA insiders assumed. However, Cleveland signed a new head coach in Kenny Atkinson, who wants to keep the team’s excellent core of players together for the time being and see if he can create synergy.
On Wednesday, July 24, Jake Fisher of Yahoo Sports reported that the Cavs had turned down all bidders interested in Garland, citing the San Antonio Spurs’ decision to sign Chris Paul after failing in trade talks with Cleveland for Garland.
“Cavaliers All-Star guard Darius Garland was another talented ball-handler the Spurs called about, sources said, although Cleveland has rebuffed any inbound trade interest for Garland to date,” according to Fisher.
Circumstances might quickly change, however, if events in Northeast Ohio unfold similarly to last year, when the team was actually better with Garland out of the lineup and more off-ball skill surrounding Mitchell in other player groups.
The fact that Garland is on a five-year contract costing $197.2 million and will cost the Cavs almost $37 million against the salary cap next year may speed up the process if the new coaching staff decides to develop a better, more well-rounded roster.
Darius Garland Better without Donovan Mitchell in the lineup; Cavs better with Mitchell. During Garland’s absence, Cleveland has committed to Mitchell, paying him $150.3 million for a new three-year contract. The organization has recently guaranteed Evan Mobley, a 23-year-old big man, at least $224.2 million on a new five-year contract, confirming his position as a franchise staple.
As a result, salary cap worries will undoubtedly arise for the Cavaliers in the near future, putting additional pressure on Cleveland to create a younger and more affordable group. Even yet, fit is the more likely aspect to cause change in the backcourt, as both Mitchell and Garland require the basketball in order to maximize their abilities as players.
Garland’s usage rate has dropped in each of the past two seasons since Mitchell joined the team, as have his traditional counting statistics, which fell from 21.7 points and 8.6 assists during his sole All-Star season in 2021-22 to 18.0 points and 6.5 assists last year, according to Basketball Reference. The Cavaliers were also 17-8 without Garland in 2023-24, and 31-26 in his 57 starts.
Darius Garland can ease the offensive burden that the Lakers have placed on LeBron James.
The Lakers have pushed LeBron James to shoulder a significant amount of the offensive burden in recent years, which may become unsustainable as he approaches his age-40 season following a run through the Summer Olympics in Paris.
James has averaged more than 35 minutes per game in each of the last two seasons, with usage rates of 33.3% and 29.2%. To put this in context, despite being the NBA’s oldest player, James’ usage percentage was 18th in the league last year.
Garland can alleviate that burden by taking over point guard duties on a regular basis, like James does despite his designated position as a forward, and help the Lakers play more offensively with his career 18.4 points per game average and 38.4% 3-point percentage on 5.8 tries per game.
Los Angeles has two unprotected first-round picks (2029, 2031) that it can trade, as well as D’Angelo Russell’s approximately $19 million deal that expires soon, which can help make the money work.
The Cavs want to win now, so the Lakers may need to include a player who can help them do so, in addition to the two first-round picks, which Cleveland can keep as insurance against one of their top players leaving in the next five years or use in a second trade for a star who fits better alongside Mitchell.
On July 16, Jovan Buha of The Athletic claimed that Los Angeles has taken a wait-and-see approach after falling short earlier in the summer.
“The Lakers’ inactivity has not been due to a lack of trying,” Buha said. “Now, according to league and team sources, the Lakers are expected to remain patient in their quest to improve their roster.”
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