High risk and high reward! The Lakers got a 3-for-1 trade support: cut love Russell + Hachimura and Zhan Mei formed the Big Three again

After losing to the Magic and the Heat in a row, the Lakers' record fell to 3-4 and slipped to 10th in the West, even less than the Spurs (9th) who had been bad last season and the Rockets (8th) who had been bad for 3 consecutive years.

Potential trading scenarios

Lakers get: Siakam;

The Raptors get: Russell + Hachimura + 2027 Lotto protection first-round pick.

Raptors: Gradually starting the rebuilding journey

The Raptors have been underperforming over the past few seasons, and the ceiling for building a team around Sika is visible to the naked eye, and it is widely believed that the Raptors will trade Sika to build a comprehensive rebuild around Barnes in the offseason.

The Raptors' choice was a surprise, and after VanVleet was snatched away by the Rockets, the team still did not send away Sika and other instant forces, and continued to build the team around the original lineup.

The results can be imagined, the Raptors in the new season are still not up and down, ranking 11th in the East with 3 wins and 4 losses so far this season, perhaps this performance will make the Raptors determined to start rebuilding.

Judging from the Raptors' building style in the past few years, even if they trade Siakam, the team will not be as bad as the Rockets have in the past three years, but hope to gradually smooth out the rebuild.

This deal fully meets this requirement, and based on the current configuration of the Lakers, the health and age of the core players, the value of the Lakers' 2027 first-round pick is very high, which will help the Raptors accelerate the rebuilding process.

The 25-year-old fits perfectly into the Raptors' potential rebuilding timeline, and he could play a bigger role with James in the offseason after his explosion last season.

Russell can fill the shortcomings of the Raptors' No. 1 and No. 2 positions, and the most important thing is that Hachimura and Russell's contracts are very friendly, the former signed a multi-year contract in the offseason, and can grow up in the Raptors with peace of mind, and the two and Schroder have worked together with the Lakers, and I believe they can quickly integrate into the team.

Russell's contract is also limited to two years, allowing the Raptors to make room for the Raptors to tap into young players or make further trades to adjust the roster in the future.

Lakers: Bet on the Big Three again

This is a high-risk trade package for the Lakers, as Russell and Hachimura were the core pieces of the team's puzzle to reach the Western Conference finals last season, and sacrificing depth is not a good thing for any team, not to mention that the swapped Siakam can't fully fill the projection void after the two leave.

But high risk often means high reward, and Siakam's scoring consistency, defensive diversity, and star rating are unmatched by Hachimura and Russell's role players.

After the trade is successfully completed, the Lakers can put on a top-level unlimited rotation roster of James, Reaves, Prince, Siakam, and Bushy Eyebrows.

In this lineup, James and Siakam can switch to the 1-5 position, and if Prince is replaced by Vanderbilt, all three can switch to 5 positions, and the Lakers' dominance on the defensive end and rebounding will be extremely terrifying.

Coupled with the fact that the Lakers only offered Russell a two-year contract in the offseason, making him a trade chip in the middle of the season is clearly part of the Lakers' plan.

Especially considering James' injury and age issues, Siakam, the big three, can eat the free ball during James' rotation and play a corresponding statistical contribution.

can also make a cameo appearance at the No. 4 position in the absence of Brother Thick Eyebrows, and even the No. 5 position in the small lineup, these are the roles he has completed with the Raptors.

The only question is whether the likes of Reaves, Prince, and Vincent will be able to shoot normal three-point performances after Russell and Hachimura leave, and if the Lakers are confident in that, then the deal is well worth the Lakers' bet.