The NBA is feeling the aftereffects of the Bradley Beal trade to the Suns. One of those could allow the Lakers to end up with Kyle Kuzma.
Now that Bradley Beal has been traded, Kyle Kuzma has no reason to return to a Wizards team that is not competing anymore. So the rumors about him returning to the Lakers will continue.
According to Jake Weinbach of Hoops Habit, Kuzma is expected to decline his $13 million player option. The Lakers, Pacers, Rockets, Spurs, Kings, and Jazz are all possibilities for the forward.
Obviously, Los Angeles bringing Kuzma back would require a sign-and-trade due to the fact that are over the cap.
Washington would be happy to facilitate a sign-and-trade because they do not have many assets even after trading Beal. Other teams could outright sign him since they have cap space.
If the Lakers made this move, it would be the only major addition that they would make this offseason. L.A. could still bring back Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura as they are restricted free agents. Therefore, the team can go over the salary cap to keep both of them.
They could still sign Chris Paul on a minimum contract but they could not trade for him in all likelihood.
Lakers rumors: Is Kyle Kuzma worth bringing back?
While Kuzma would be really fun to watch with this team, it would not be a smart move for the Lakers to focus on a sign-and-trade for Kuzma.
The Lakers could certainly make the assets work due to the fact that the Wizards would be taking back expiring contracts and second-round draft picks. Still, this would be the only major move that they could make.
Yes, this team is a top-five team (with Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura back) in the West. Still, they are missing a suitable point guard for the playoffs.
It was clearly shown that D'Angelo Russell is not a starting-caliber point guard for the playoffs after his benching in last season's playoff run. When his offense is off, it is very hard to play him at all due to his lackluster defense.
This is the reason that the Lakers should not heavily pursue a reunion with Kuzma unless Chris Paul falls into their laps via a buyout. That is not likely. Therefore, they should pass on this.
