{"id":172563,"date":"2026-01-13T13:03:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T18:03:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=172563"},"modified":"2026-01-13T13:05:53","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T18:05:53","slug":"report-lakers-trade-rumors-klutch-sports-swap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/01\/13\/report-lakers-trade-rumors-klutch-sports-swap\/","title":{"rendered":"Report: Lakers Urged to Pursue Strange ‘Klutch-for-Klutch’ Swap"},"content":{"rendered":"

Another week closer to the trade deadline, another rumor involving the Los Angeles Lakers.<\/span><\/p>\n

As the purple and gold continue their quest for a \u201ctwo-way wing with size,\u201d<\/a> two more names have popped up for consideration. Both are from mediocre Eastern Conference teams, and both just so happen to be represented by\u2014who else\u2014Klutch Sports.<\/span><\/p>\n

Report: Lakers Urged to Pursue ‘Klutch-for-Klutch’ Swap<\/b><\/h2>\n

Matt Moore: Klutch Wants Hunter or Bridges in LA<\/b><\/h3>\n

According to NBA writer Matt Moore, the superstar agency <\/span>representing five current Lakers<\/span><\/a>\u2014<\/span>LeBron<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Bronny James<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Jarred Vanderbilt<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Adou Thiero<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Nick Smith Jr.<\/span><\/a>\u2014hopes to bring some high-flying talent to the City of Angels.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI never know what to make of it when I hear that a Klutch guy wants out because they <\/span>always<\/span><\/i> seem to want out\u2026 until Klutch no longer represents them. But league sources have said the super agency has expressed interest in a Klutch-for-Klutch swap of <\/span>Deandre Hunter<\/span><\/a> for <\/span>Rui Hachimura<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Gabe Vincent<\/span><\/a> to the Lakers or to Charlotte for <\/span>Miles Bridges<\/span><\/a>,\u201d <\/span>Moore wrote<\/span><\/a> in his \u201cHardwood Paroxyism\u201d Substack Tuesday.<\/span><\/p>\n

The report comes two weeks after Rich Paul claimed Klutch <\/span>\u201cnever ran the Lakers,\u201d<\/span><\/a> unable to escape the \u201cKlutch Lakers\u201d moniker that has followed the team since James\u2019 arrival. It also comes right after Paul suggested a bold (and ridiculous) <\/span>trade proposal<\/span><\/a>: sending <\/span>Austin Reaves<\/span><\/a> to the Grizzlies for <\/span>Jaren Jackson Jr.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

De\u2019Andre Hunter<\/b><\/h4>\n

The Lakers were already tied to Hunter last month, with the 28-year-old wing considered a <\/span>\u201cviable backup plan\u201d<\/span><\/a> instead of <\/span>Herb Jones<\/span><\/a>. With the 9-32 New Orleans Pelicans hanging onto Jones for dear life, it makes sense why the Lakers could pivot to Hunter\u2014who they technically <\/span>drafted<\/span><\/a> in 2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 36 games for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Hunter has averaged 13.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists while shooting 42.5% from the field, 30.3% from three and 87.5% from the free-throw line. After a rollercoaster run as a starter between November and December, the Cavs benched Hunter again on Dec. 17. Since then, he has put up <\/span>11.4 points and 4.4 rebounds<\/span><\/a> per game on .415\/.300\/.946 splits.<\/span><\/p>\n

For a former top-five pick who has resorted to a reserve role on a middling East team, it’ss easy to see why Hunter\u2019s reps want a change of scenery. However, the Lakers wouldn’t be the answer, considering they\u2019d downgrade from Hachimura in acquiring a poor perimeter shooter and, in the eyes of some, a <\/span>horrendous defender<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
Dec 14, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward De’Andre Hunter (12) shoots in the first quarter against the Charlotte Hornets at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Miles Bridges<\/b><\/h4>\n

No matter how many <\/span>\u201cHUM DIDDLY DEE!\u201d calls Eric Collins makes<\/span><\/a>, Bridges isn\u2019t the solution to the Lakers\u2019 problems, either.<\/span><\/p>\n

A 26-year-old wing in his seventh year for the Hornets, Bridges has been a bright spot amid Charlotte\u2019s struggles. In 39 games this season, he\u2019s averaged 19.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists on .443\/.333\/.846 splits. Just like Hunter, Bridges is an astounding athlete. Yet, concerns over his inconsistent shooting and lack of defense persist. Laker fans have also pointed out that Bridges would <\/span>\u201cruin\u201d the locker room<\/span><\/a>, with <\/span>some<\/span><\/a> mentioning his <\/span>off-court issues<\/span><\/a> as a key reason to stay away.<\/span><\/p>\n

So while Bridges may boost the Lakers\u2019 offense and athleticism, there are factors that are simply too hard to ignore when adjusting a roster committed to championship excellence.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a9 Kirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Another week closer to the trade deadline, another rumor involving the Los Angeles Lakers. As the purple and gold continue their quest for a \u201ctwo-way wing with size,\u201d two more names have popped up for consideration. Both are from mediocre Eastern Conference teams, and both just so happen to be represented by\u2014who else\u2014Klutch Sports. Report: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4265,"featured_media":172569,"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":[1608,7,9,26,62,3,4721],"tags":[1875,4921,1148,1749],"class_list":["post-172563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-hornets","category-cavaliers","category-lakers","category-nba","category-news","category-trade-rumors","tag-deandre-hunter","tag-gabe-vincent","tag-miles-bridges","tag-rui-hachimura"],"modified_by":"Jordan Pagkalinawan","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172563","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\/4265"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172563"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172563\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":172588,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172563\/revisions\/172588"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172569"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172563"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}