Lakers' Top Six Recruitment Targets Revealed! Former Doncic Teammate Included, DiVincenzo Most Surprising

On January 29th Beijing time, with the NBA trade deadline approaching rapidly, the Los Angeles Lakers stand out as one of the busiest teams in the trading arena. Up to now, the Lakers have identified at least six target players, and the total might be greater.

Brad Turner from the Lakers wrote: “According to multiple NBA insiders, potential trade targets linked to the Lakers include Dallas Mavericks’ Naji Marshall—who was once a teammate of Doncic—as well as Cleveland Cavaliers’ De’Andre Hunter, Minnesota Timberwolves’ Donte DiVincenzo, and Sacramento Kings’ Keon Ellis. The New Orleans Pelicans’ Trey Murphy III and Herbert Jones have also drawn Lakers’ interest. Several teams across the league are eyeing these two players as well. However, sources reveal that the Pelicans are demanding a high price for them, and teams are currently waiting to see if the asking price will drop before next week’s trade deadline.”

Among the players mentioned above, several might already be well-known to Lakers fans.

Herbert Jones from the New Orleans Pelicans and Keon Ellis from the Sacramento Kings are both “3-and-D” players and have been rumored to have links with the Los Angeles Lakers for some time. Jones’ teammate Trey Murphy III is also a player the Lakers have clearly expressed strong interest in. Although Cavaliers forward De’Andre Hunter doesn’t quite fit the 3-and-D mold, he has previously been connected with the Lakers.

However, connections between the Lakers and Mavericks forward Naji Marshall and Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo are fresh developments.

Naji Marshall

It’s not entirely surprising that the Lakers have included Marshall on their recruitment list.

Not only did he briefly play alongside Doncic in Dallas, but they also share a good personal relationship. Now that Doncic has become the most popular team leader in Los Angeles, it makes sense for the Lakers to pursue players familiar to him. Marshall is currently in the prime of his career, which adds significant value to his potential acquisition. Moreover, although he’s unlikely to win Defensive Player of the Year anytime soon, he consistently takes on tough defensive assignments.

Putting aside his sometimes inconsistent three-point shooting, from a team fit perspective, Marshall would be a very solid choice.

Donte DiVincenzo

Among all the mentioned targets, the Lakers’ interest in DiVincenzo is the most unexpected.

First, with the roster mostly intact, the Lakers already have ample ball handlers. After all, there’s only one ball, and managing ball distribution has quietly become a major challenge for the team. Keep in mind, Doncic’s usage rate is an NBA career-high 37.8%; Reaves is also enjoying his best season, averaging 26.6 points and 6.3 assists per game, both career highs; and James, a 2021 All-Star and the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, now even has to actively seek the ball.

Essentially, the Lakers don’t truly need DiVincenzo to strengthen their squad. In terms of individual ability, DiVincenzo is indeed superior to Vincent—who the Lakers will likely trade to the Timberwolves. But unless DiVincenzo is ready to dedicate as much effort to off-ball play as he does to ball-handling offense, his arrival might actually complicate the team’s lineup fit issues.