NBA Rumors: Lakers Linked To Aging All-Star Scorer To Take Spot Of Young Star

The Los Angeles Lakers need scoring help out LeBron James and Anthony Davis. A name that has been suggested is Carmelo Anthony who could take the place of Kyle Kuzma. This is assuming that the purple and gold end up dealing the 25-year-old cager.

The Lakers do not have the financial flexibility and recourse is to deal away some of their players to get some talent into the team. Kuzma has been often mentioned plus other notable names such as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso.

There have been a couple of names mentioned, including that of Kemba Walker. The 31-year-old guard was recently traded by the Boston Celtics to the Thunder but the consensus is that he won’t be staying in OKC for long.

It would make sense for the Lakers and Kuzma. The native of Michigan has been struggling to show his true worth and the only way for him to break out of his shell is to join a team where he can be used extensively. The Thunder, a team rebuilding with young guys, looms as a plausible stop.

Assuming that Walker or any other superstar joins the Lakers, general manager Rob Pelinka and Frank Vogel need to find low-cost players to join the mix. Carmelo Anthony, a close friend of LeBron James, could be an option.

Although the 10-time All-Star is no longer the same guy he used to be, he has shown that he still can score per source. But the hitch here is that Anthony may have to lower his expectations as far as compensation is concerned.

Anthony may have to settle for a pay cut to join James and Davis. If this is consummated, the Lakers would have another scoring option, a spark that could come off the bench behind James and Davis.

Some see this as an upgrade from Kuzma. But considering Anthony is already 37, it may be a short-term fix. James is not getting any younger as well at 36. He will turn 37 in December.

Given that the Lakers have limited options, Anthony is an option. However, Pelinka and head coach Frank Vogel are likely to skim the market some more to see other options, ones that can play for at least 2 to 3 years more.