{"id":168601,"date":"2025-12-02T07:30:06","date_gmt":"2025-12-02T12:30:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=168601"},"modified":"2025-12-02T07:30:06","modified_gmt":"2025-12-02T12:30:06","slug":"lakers-urged-to-take-advantage-of-clippers-meltdown-through-trade-opportunity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/12\/02\/lakers-urged-to-take-advantage-of-clippers-meltdown-through-trade-opportunity\/","title":{"rendered":"Lakers Urged To Take Advantage Of Rivals\u2019 Meltdown"},"content":{"rendered":"

LOS ANGELES<\/strong> \u2014 The Lakers<\/a> and Clippers<\/a> have delivered strikingly different starts to the season. The Lakers sit second in the West with a 15-5 record, while the Clippers languish in 14th at 5-16. The Lakers recently ended a seven-game winning streak, but their form still reflects stability. The Clippers, meanwhile, have dropped five straight and show no signs of stopping their slide. This contrast sets the stage for a timely opportunity. With the Lakers contending and the Clippers sinking, timing becomes an asset in this trade scenario.<\/p>\n

Lakers Urged To Take Advantage Of Clippers\u2019 Meltdown Through Trade Opportunity<\/h2>\n

Clippers face long-term consequences<\/h3>\n
\"LA
Nov 4, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; LA Clippers players (from left) center Brook Lopez (11), center Ivica Zubac (40), forward Derrick Jones Jr. (5), forward Nicolas Batum (33) and guard Kris Dunn (8) watch on the bench against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Clippers are on track to hand Oklahoma City another premium draft asset. Their unprotected first-round pick sits in a historically deep class, and the Paul George<\/a> deal continues to haunt them six years later. They can only counter this disaster by staying competitive, but the Western Conference shows little mercy. The longer the losing continues, the deeper their hole becomes. With Kawhi Leonard\u2019s<\/a> future uncertain, the Clippers must think beyond the present. Sacrificing more picks makes little sense. That reality makes them potential sellers at the deadline. A Lakers and Clippers trade becomes feasible when one team needs picks and the other needs specific roster upgrades.<\/p>\n

Lakers can capitalize on a collapsing rival<\/h3>\n

This is where the Lakers can exploit the meltdown. The Clippers possess two defensive specialists who fit what the Lakers lack. Derrick Jones Jr<\/a> delivers energy, length and versatile defense. He’s averages 10.5 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.0 stocks per game. His role in Dallas\u2019 Finals run showcased his value in a winning system. Kris Dunn<\/a> brings elite point-of-attack defense. He averages 8.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.6 steals. He rarely shoots threes, but he defends at a playoff level. These two players address the Lakers\u2019 biggest flaw: a defense ranked 18th in the league. Their skill sets create balance around the stars and elevate lineup versatility. A targeted Lakers and Clippers trade helps both sides for different reasons.<\/p>\n

The path to a realistic deal<\/h3>\n

The Lakers will need to surrender draft compensation to push the Clippers into action. Their 2032 second-rounder or next year\u2019s first-rounder could force the conversation. The Clippers gain future assets during a season heading nowhere. They also gain something less tangible but still appealing: the chance to hate-watch their rival. If the Lakers face injuries or setbacks, the Clippers could reap value from a trade they made out of necessity. The Lakers have already battled several injuries this season, so the risk is present. Its important to note that Jones Jr is currently sidelined with a sprained MCL that will keep him out for about a month.<\/p>\n

Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LOS ANGELES \u2014 The Lakers and Clippers have delivered strikingly different starts to the season. The Lakers sit second in the West with a 15-5 record, while the Clippers languish in 14th at 5-16. The Lakers recently ended a seven-game winning streak, but their form still reflects stability. The Clippers, meanwhile, have dropped five straight […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5018,"featured_media":168602,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[62,1608,27,26,3,4721],"tags":[50244,2951,749,458,98],"class_list":["post-168601","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","category-basketball","category-clippers","category-lakers","category-news","category-trade-rumors","tag-2025-26-nba-season","tag-defense","tag-derrick-jones-jr","tag-kris-dunn","tag-nba-draft"],"modified_by":"Frederick Okocha","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168601","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5018"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=168601"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168601\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":168606,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168601\/revisions\/168606"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/168602"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=168601"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=168601"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=168601"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}