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Los Angeles Lakers Interested In Move For Cleveland Cavaliers Guard

July 10, 2022 ~ The Los Angeles Lakers are rumored to be in for Cleveland Cavaliers guard Collin Sexton. The 2020 NBA Champions don’t have much wiggle room where their finances are concerned, with three major earners in LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook on their books, while the likes of Talen-Horton Tucker, Kendrick Nunn, and Austin Reaves are among their role players whom questions loom over.

A $6.4 million taxpayer mid-level exception is the only card the Lakers could play at the moment. That kind of money doesn’t get you a superstar, nor someone who could change a team’s fortunes. However, a valuable rotation piece could be had for such a number.

Per Hoops Wire’s Sam Amico, the Lakers are considering a move for Sexton, who is now a restricted agent after four years in Cleveland. The way Amico puts it, Sexton’s teammate, Darius Garland has become the face of the franchise. The Cavs have also brought in Caris LeVert, who plays in the same position as the former Alabama star.

 “[Darius] Garland and Sexton share an agent. Garland became the face of the Cavs. The Cavs traded for Caris LeVert, who plays Sexton’s position. And Sexton is drawing plenty of interest — with a few league sources telling me even LeBron James‘ Lakers are interested,” Amico writes.

He also notes that the player is represented by Klutch Sports, which also has James and Davis as clients. LeBron has a close friendship with Rich Paul, Klutch Sports’ CEO, so that could factor in. The Lakers have taken advantage of the relationship on a few occasions since landing LBJ.

A move for Sexton is still considered to be unlikely, though.

John Hollinger of The Athletic rates Sexton the most interesting free agent this offseason.

The 23-year-old averaged 24.3 points a game for the Cavs in 2020/21 but only played 11 games last season due to injury. A solid marksman from distance, Sexton shoots a career percentage of 37.8 percent, yet he’s considered to be one of the NBA’s worst perimeter defenders.

Despite the latter, the guard would mark a top acquisition for the Lakers, though he might be beyond them as the Cavs can match any offer proposed by another team. The Cavs are also hopeful of building from last season’s relative success, having nearly made it to the playoffs.

They will be an interesting bet in multiple NBA futures in 2022/23 and, with sports betting in Ohio emerging as a new way to gamble on both pro and college teams, fans will have added options on that front.

Perhaps the Lakers view Sexton as another player who could come in from Cleveland and help lead them to a championship. There is another link happening this summer, however, with James shown putting up shots with former Cavs teammate Kevin Love.

LeBron has been the subject of lots of criticism as of late, with fans claiming he doesn’t care about winning titles anymore. Among those are folks who reckon the four-time champ’s move to Los Angeles was motivated by off-court concerns such as movie appearances.

James has since starred in the second installment of Space Jam, which was released last year. The veteran star also produced the new Netflix basketball film Hustle, starring Adam Sandler and Juancho Hernangomez.

Of course, most LeBron fans wouldn’t dare question his commitment given the way he takes care of his body and the fact that he has continued to play top-level basketball heading into year 19.

The forward is already putting in the work this summer as he looks to lead the Lakers to another title next season. The Lakers were quite dismal last term, one in which they were expected to challenge for the championship, yet they were unable to even make it to the play-in tournament.

James is keen on making up for that and has started preparing. He was recently spotted participating in shooting drills with Love on a basketball court in New York City.

Both players appear to be aging well. Love, who was expected to have left the Cavs by now, was actually quite instrumental during the season and had one of his best campaigns in a while, averaging 13.6 points on 39.2 percent shooting from three in 22.5 minutes a game.

James getting down to business this early is no surprise, especially as he watched all of the playoffs at home. If his body holds up next season and the Lakers have a healthy Davis, they’ll certainly be in the conversation.