Lakers Rumors: Why LA Must Trade Andrew Bynum to Magic for Dwight Howard ASAP
Mitch Kupchak can’t hesitate and wait to bait the Orlando Magic.
Andrew Bynum’s stock couldn’t possibly get higher than it is right now. A straight-up swap for Dwight Howard is looking more and more justified and the Los Angeles Lakers would be insane to let such an opportunity slip through their fingertips.
Bynum is coming off a dominant performance against the Houston Rockets in which the center scored 21 points and inhaled 22 boards in a 108-99 Laker victory. According to ESPN’s John Hollinger, Bynum’s Player Efficiency Rating is currently 32.52. On the PER scale, such a score is rated as a runaway MVP candidate.
According to Brian Scmitz of the Orlando Sentinel, Otis Smith is listening to all trade offers. Los Angeles has the trading piece to make him sit all ears with them alone.
The 24-year-old walking trade rumor is playing so well that many LA fans are rethinking their lust for Howard altogether. That is how high Bynum’s stock is right now and that hype is exactly why they must deal him for Dwight now. As the Los Angeles Times’ Bill Plaschke wrote after Bynum’s 29-point, 13-rebound effort in his season debut on New Year’s Eve, the injury-plagued big has a “checkered body of work.”
How long can Bynum really keep this up? And more importantly, how long can he stay out of the training room?
Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol are aging rapidly and Los Angeles can’t afford another season-ending knee injury. Looking at the big picture and the odds that Bynum hits the hardwood again in years down the road, they can’t possibly pass on this opportunity.
Dwight Howard doesn’t possess Bynum’s skill set in the post, but the Lakers don’t need him to. Gasol is arguably the most talented low-post scorer in the league.
And while many would tell you that Bynum is a more effective one-on-one post defender, how many dominating centers besides Howard himself are out there for Bynum to shut down? D12’s All-World help-side defense is what has won him Defensive Player of the Year three straight seasons. Elite help defense, not man-to-man post defense, is what the Lakers need to knock off teams like the Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder who win by attacking the rim.
If Kupchak and Jim Buss think too long and hard about this one, LA will miss a golden opportunity to pave another road to the NBA Finals. The Lakers can make it there with Bynum, but he’s a hand-shovel compared to the snowplow that is Howard. Superman is a physical freak and the safest short and long-term solution in Hollywood.
David Daniels is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.
