NBA Rumors: Lakers Likely To Trade For Breakout Star Likened To Michael Jordan

The Los Angeles Lakers could be looking at a prospect who was once compared to Michael Jordan.

Things didn’t end up well for the Lakers this postseason after the team suffered an unfortunate first-round elimination in the hands of Chris Paul and the Phoenix Suns.

Rumors began swirling that the Lakers are likely to bolster and a couple of names are already being linked to a departure.

As for potential additions, the “Purple and Gold” is also believed to have already set its sights on a few targets, including Cleveland Cavaliers star Collin Sexton, reputable NBA insider Sam Amico reported.

According to Amico, the Lakers have joined an array of NBA teams in exploring a possible trade deal for Sexton this offseason.

“Per Hoops Wire sources, the Heat, Knicks, Pelicans, Pacers, Thunder and Lakers are among the teams evaluating a trade for Sexton,” Amico wrote.

“Some of the teams in that group would be willing to take back the contract of Cavs power forward Kevin Love to help make a Sexton trade work, sources said,” he continued. “Others might reach out to third parties to help facilitate a deal. All apparently remain in the exploratory stage and have yet to put together anything resembling a real offer.”

The Cavs, on the other hand, are also said to be open to the idea of Sexton and veteran forward Kevin Love.

As it stands, it appears that the Cavs had a change of stance and are “no longer” keen on handing Sexton a “max” contract, per The Athletic’s Jason Lloyd.

“A deal that might make more sense for the Cavs is bundling [Kevin] Love with Collin Sexton, who I’ve been told is “very available” this summer,” Lloyd wrote.

“I thought the Cavs were going to write the check to pay Sexton a max contract this summer, but based on what I’ve been told the last few months from sources around the league, I no longer believe that’s true ,” he added.

Should the Lakers decide to pursue Sexton, they might have to devise a persuasive offer as another report revealed that among the aforementioned NBA teams being linked to the scoring point guard, New York Knicks are moving in closer to acquiring the Cavs standout, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

Sexton had a breakout year this past season, having recorded a career-high 24 points per game.

He put his name on the map by leading the underdog Cavs team to victory over the star-studded Brooklyn Nets earlier this year, dropping a whopping 42 points.

The stunning performance didn’t go unnoticed as Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff heaped praise on Sexton after the game.

What’s even more interesting, Bickerstaff even implied that Sexton was kind of like the Michael Jordan of his team at the time.

“We’re confident Collin can beat his man,” Bickerstaff said. “It was literally trying to just put him in a position where he could go and play a one-on-one basketball game.”

“[Like] The old Doug Collins clip,” he added. “Give the ball to Michael [Jordan] and get the f— out of the way. Just give him space to go do his thing."