5 Trade Deadline Deals Los Angeles Lakers Should Already Be Targeting

Don't let the start of this NBA summer fool you—the real offseason fireworks for the Los Angeles Lakers won't come before 2018.

That's when a collection of front-line free agents will reach the open market, and the Lakers will try to sell them a purple-and-gold dream of becoming part of the Association's next superpower.

It's an audacious undertaking, and one that's already driving the franchise's decisions. LA dumped D'Angelo Russell to help clean its financial books two years after making him the second overall pick. And the drafting of Lonzo Ball could provide the glue that binds a superteam together.

But the work is far from finished. There are more moves worth contemplating between now and the Feb. 8 NBA trade deadline, all of which work to improve the 2018 picture.

From salary dumps to sneaky recruiting efforts, we have broken down five potential trades to brighten the Lakers' outlook.

Clarkson for Cap Relief

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The Lakers have two non-rookie deals on the payroll beyond 2017-18. One belongs to Jordan Clarkson, a 25-year-old combo guard who just averaged a career-best 18.1 points per 36 minutes. The other is held by Luol Deng, a 32-year-old who just collected his highest salary ever last season while posting personal worsts in minutes (26.5), points (7.6) and true shooting percentage (47.0).

Guess which one they prefer to move. Hint: It's not the player anyone else wants.

However, the simplest way for LA to increase its 2018 spending power is shedding the three years and $37.5 million owed to Jordan Clarkson. A three-team swap with the Charlotte Hornets and Brooklyn Nets could make that happen without routing any long-term money to Hollywood.

Clarkson goes to Charlotte, giving the Hornets a badly needed backcourt scorer to take some heat off Kemba Walker. Brooklyn aligns the salaries and picks up Jeremy Lamb, Johnny O'Bryant III and a 2018 second-round selection for participating.

LA brings back only expiring contracts—$9.1 million for Trevor Booker and the non-guaranteed $1.3 million salary of Treveon Graham. That might seem a disappointing return to some, but Clarkson has been a below-average player (minus-4.02 real plus-minus, 70th among 78 point guards, per ESPN.com) making above-average money ($11.5 million next season, fourth on the team and 104th overall).

Besides, if dumping Clarkson is the difference in snagging a second star, it's an easy sacrifice to make. To that end, the Lakers have given this enough thought to have confidence in their ability to dump him for cap space if needed, a source told Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus.   

Swapping Expiring Centers

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If you take the words of Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka at face value, the Timofey Mozgov salary dump was no salary dump at all. Rather, it was a path to former All-Star center Brook Lopez.

"What today is not about is players that we traded away. It's not about creating cap space," Pelinka said at Lopez's introductory press conference, per ESPN.com's Baxter Holmes. "It's about this phenomenal human being and player that we're so excited to have join the Lakers."

The Lakers should be excited to add Lopez, who's their best interior anchor since at least a healthy Andrew Bynum. But Lopez holds more value as an asset than as a player, and he can be an asset for reasons beyond his $22.6 million expiring contract.

With all signs pointing to his being showcased in the offense—Clarkson is LA's top returning scorer at 14.7 points per game—Lopez could see his stock climb ahead of the trade deadline. His steady scoring, floor-spacing and shot-blocking should all appeal to the Milwaukee Bucks, who may feel they are one player away from being scary if their core matures quickly.

The Bucks can start their offer with Greg Monroe, who's another offensive-minded center on an expiring deal. Despite Monroe's solid 2016-17, Milwaukee continues its search to deal him, sources told ESPN.com's Ian Begley. Even though it was a different regime, the Lakers had interest in the Moose during his 2015 free-agency journey.

But the bigger draw for the Lakers here would be a top-20 protected—lottery protected if they're lucky—first-round pick. That's a good haul for a one-year rental, especially with their own first-rounder already out of their hands. To make the money work, LA could either add former first-rounder Rashad Vaughn or Gary Payton II and his non-guaranteed contract.

Another Escape from Clarkson's Contract

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The ideal trade partners come from a state of desperation, which happens to be where the New Orleans Pelicans reside.

They have less than 12 months to accurately assess the fit of DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis. That means, there are less than 12 months to make the most of the Brow's best NBA teammate to date and provide some evidence they're capable of constructing something substantial around him.

And that's not all. They'll attempt to do so with a roster that underwhelms along the perimeter and has overburdened financial books.

"When the season begins, New Orleans needs to look good off paper, too, because all the remaining paper is gone," The Ringer's Haley O'Shaughnessy wrote. "The franchise will pay $118.4 million in guaranteed contracts this season, slightly under the $119 million luxury tax limit."

That salary bill doesn't include a guaranteed playoff berth, by the way. But the Pelicans would greatly improve their odds by landing Clarkson without losing a regular rotation piece.

How would that be possible? By using draft capital instead. The Pelicans could package a first-round pick with Omer Asik to send to the Atlanta Hawks. New Orleans would then send a second-rounder (or two) to LA, which would also take on Marco Belinelli's expiring $6.6 million salary.

That gives the Lakers more financial flexibility, a second-round flier or two in upcoming drafts and a three-point specialist who could garner interest as a trade-deadline rental.

Ramp Up LeBron Recruitment

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The Lakers want a shot at LeBron James next summer. If that's news to you, congratulations on finding your way out from underneath that rock.

Both Pelinka and president of basketball operations Magic Johnson have been buttering up LeBron's agent Rich Paul "from the day they got the job," according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. That effort may have factored into the one-year, $18 million deal they gave Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, another of Paul's clients.

But the Lakers have considered a more direct manner of catching James' attention. They were interested in his banana boat buddy Dwyane Wade, according to Wojnarowski, either through a trade or signing him if he was bought out.

Wojnarowski said the Caldwell-Pope deal killed those talks, but there should be a few ways to revive them. Both involve sending Clarkson to the Windy City, where the combo guard could slot in behind or alongside Zach LaVine or even serve as an alternative to committing major coin to the aerial artist.

The rest of the package depends on Chicago's willingness to take on salary.

If the Bulls aren't preparing any aggressive free-agent pursuits in the near future, they could absorb Deng's remaining three years and $54 million for the price of two future firsts (none before 2020). If that's too much to bear, they could grab an upcoming second-rounder (the Denver Nuggets' pick) and Corey Brewer's expiring $7.5 million deal.

Wade could be the ultimate recruiting chip, provided he'd accept a reasonable contract and perhaps a reserve role. He shares a close friendship and a championship past with James, and the two might envision LA as the best setting to create a championship future.

Not Paying Deng...Or Randle

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It's fun to fantasize about the many different uses of next summer's cap space. What's not as entertaining is trying to determine the ideal outcome of Julius Randle's restricted free agency.

"What are you supposed to give a high-energy playmaker and finisher who isn't a three-point threat (27.3 percent for his career) and shouldn't be defending 3s or 4s?" Bleacher Report's Dan Favale wrote.

Randle is tricky to price on his own. His track record is light for his draft class—thanks to the broken leg that effectively wiped out his 2014-15 rookie season—and his future is far from defined. He has some contemporary big man skills (handles, lateral quickness) but lacks the most coveted ones (rim protection and floor spacing).

He might be a keeper, but the Lakers need sure things to engineer a quick turnaround. A team such as the Brooklyn Nets, though, can afford to wait on Randle's development and should be more willing to gamble on his potential, given their shallow asset pool.

But for the Lakers to part with Randle, they have to dump Deng in the process. And for the Nets to take Deng back, they need a future first in return and DeMarre Carroll going out—along with Trevor Booker for salary-matching purposes.

Carroll doesn't have an expiring contract, but he will next summer when LA needs the room. He's also younger and cheaper than Deng, so he should prove easier to deal.

The attractiveness of this trade all depends on the front office's evaluation of Randle. If they are as bemused about his financial worth and on-court future as we are, this would free them from having to solve that puzzle and increase their flexibility.

Unless otherwise indicated, all stats via Basketball Reference or NBA.com. Contract information obtained via Basketball Insiders.

Zach Buckley covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @ZachBuckleyNBA.