Lakers Trade Rumors: 'Starting-Level Upgrade' Sought for No. 17 Pick, Malik Beasley

Add the Los Angeles Lakers to the long list of NBA teams reportedly interested in moving their first-round draft picks.

There is a "growing possibility" that the Lakers will trade the No. 17 pick alongside Mo Bamba and/or Malik Beasley for a "starting-level upgrade" next season, The Athletic's Jovan Buha reported.

ESPN's Jonathan Givony reported Thursday that Los Angeles was exploring potential deals involving the No. 17 pick. That would follow a pattern for the Lakers, a win-now team that has not kept their own first-round pick since 2018, per Sam Quinn of CBS Sports.

Bamba and Beasley were both midseason acquisitions for the Lakers last season. Bamba was limited by injury to nine games post-trade, while Beasley fell out of the rotation as he struggled with consistency.

When Beasley was averaging a career-best 19.6 points per game for the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2020-21, he was shooting just under 40.0% from the three-point line.

That shooting consistency vacillated with the Lakers, leading the team to shy away from relying on Beasley in the playoffs. By the time Los Angeles played in the second round against the Golden State Warriors, Beasley's minutes were down to the single digits. In the Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets, he made it off the bench for just 57 seconds in four games.

Beasley's contract extends into 2023-24 on a $16.5-million player option, and Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times reported June 1 that the Lakers could pick up this option "as a floor spacer or a tradeable expiring contract."

Bamba got less of a shot with Los Angeles. He only made seven appearances with the team before spraining his ankle in March. Bamba returned in time for the playoffs but barely played, serving as the team's fourth center before exiting again with another ankle issue.

Right now, Bamba is signed on at $10.3 million for next season, but that salary is not guaranteed until June 29. There is a potential the Lakers guarantee that money in order to include his contract in a trade, The Athletic's John Hollinger reported June 6.

It would be a long shot for the Lakers to add a starting player at No. 17 next week. If that's their goal this summer, and if the team wants out of Beasley or Bamba's contracts, packaging all three together could be the team's best shot at improving this offseason.