Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol Must Be Traded: 9 Realistic Lakers Trade Opportunities

The Los Angeles Lakers as currently constructed are done winning NBA titles. They must be blown up, quickly, severely and without emotion, lest they be doomed to being a perennial playoff contender and title pretender.

The simple fact of the matter is that the trio of Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Metta World Peace will be 34, 32 and 33 years of age respectively next season, and even coupled with emergent young star center Andrew Bynum, they are simply too old to win another title being three of a team's four best players.

By the time Bynum truly becomes a superstar capable of dominating games on a daily basis, the Lakers' three elder statesman could be getting ready for retirement.

Now, before I go any further I will say that if I were the Lakers' GM, I would strongly consider trading Andrew Bynum and/or Pau Gasol before this June's draft to maximize the talent surrounding Kobe Bryant and therefore try to win as many titles as possible before the Black Mamba rides off into the sunset and ends his brilliant career. I have explained this in my article titled, "Lakers Must Trade Andrew Bynum and/or Pau Gasol to Maximize Kobe Bryant's Career."

However, the truth is that the Lakers' brass and especially the man truly running the team, owner Jim Buss, may decide that the best way to move forward is to build for the future and to build around Andrew Bynum. If that's the decision, it goes without saying that both Pau Gasol and the greatest Laker ever, Kobe Bryant, must be traded immediately to enable the team to surround Bynum with a plethora of young talent capable of contending for a title for the next decade.

Trading Pau Gasol is the easy part. Trading Kobe Bryant and getting him to agree to be traded (as he is one of the few players in the league to have a true no-trade clause in his contract) promises to be much more difficult. However, in all reality, the Lakers trading Kobe Bryant may be best for both the franchise and "Mr. 81" himself.

Below, I have listed and explained the three most realistic and beneficial trades the Lakers could make with Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol individually as well as the three such trades the Lakers could make including both Kobe and Pau together. We all know the Black Mamba is very fond of the Big Spaniard and vice versa, and the duo would love to continue playing together if at all possible.

Kobe Bryant Trades

I believe there are only three teams in the NBA that both Kobe Bryant would agree to be traded to and which the Lakers would agree to trade with, and they are all in the Eastern Conference.

Kobe and Metta World Peace to the Bulls for Carlos Boozer, Luol Deng and the No. 29 Pick

Dwyane Wade and LeBron James wanted nothing to do with following Michael Jordan's legacy in Chicago, but the Black Mamba would relish the challenge. A starting five of Rose, Kobe, MWP, Gibson and Noah would be one of the the best defensive starting fives in history. And if the Bulls can convince a few veterans such as Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, Antawn Jamison or even Kobe's old running mate Lamar Odom to sign with them on veteran-minimum contracts the Bulls could be ready to hang their first championship banner since 1998 next season.

The Lakers could do far worse than receiving star small forward Deng, solid bruiser Boozer, the No. 29 pick in this year's deep draft and being able to dump the contract of World Peace for Kobe Bryant.

Kobe to the Knicks for Carmelo Anthony, Toney Douglas and Jerome Jordan

Madison Square Garden was built for a player like Kobe Bryant...and a coach like Phil Jackson.

I honestly believe the Knicks would be at the top of Kobe's trade wish list, and that the second he was traded there Phil Jackson would clamor to sign the richest coaching contract in NBA history.

It also wouldn't surprise me in the least to see the Lakers amnesty Metta World Peace next season and for the Knicks to scoop up both him and Lamar Odom in free agency on mere veteran's minimum contracts. If fans in the Garden thought things were crazy when Linsanity hit, just wait until they have a Knicks top six of Lin, Kobe, MWP, Amare, Tyson and Odom coached by Phil Jackson!

As for the Lakers, this is perhaps the best and most realistic trade to be made for Kobe Bryant, and the Carmelo-Bynum duo is a great twosome to build a championship team around in lala land. 

Kobe to the 76ers for Evan Turner, Elton Brand and the No. 15 pick

Outside of New York and Chicago, there may not be another city in America that Kobe would rather lead to a title than his hometown Philadelphia, despite the way the city's fans booed him when he won his first All-Star Game MVP trophy. If this trade were to go down I could see World Peace and Odom following the Kobester to the city of brotherly love just as they would to New York. A top seven of Holiday, Kobe, MWP, Odom, Hawes, Lou and Thad would be a force to be reckoned with.

The Lakers could actually get the biggest bang for their buck with this trade if Turner turns into the star many think he will, and if the No. 15 pick nets them a great young stud as well.

Pau Gasol Trades

Pau Gasol not only doesn't have a no-trade clause, but he is also one of the nicest, most humble, unassuming and easy-going stars in the league today. The Lakers would have no trouble trading him to any of the other 29 teams in the NBA; therefore, I will only explain what I believe the Lakers' thinking would be on the following trades.

Pau to the Hawks for Josh Smith, Marvin Williams and the No. 23 Pick

A front line of Bynum, Smith and Williams would be among the best in the league, and if the No. 23 pick could be used to grab another quality player, this could be a magnificent trade for the Lakers. 

Pau to the Rockets for Kevin Martin, Patrick Patterson and Marcus Morris

The above trade would be a dandy if coupled with a Kobe-for-Carmelo trade, as the Lakers would be absolutely loaded with young, dynamic talent.

Pau to the Raptors for Andrea Bargani, Leinas Kleiza and the Raptors' First-Round Pick

A Bynum-Bargnani tandem has the potential to be devastating offensively, and if the Raptors' first-round pick could be used to land the Lakers a quality starter, this could be an amazingly profitable trade for the franchise.

Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol Combined Trades

Kobe and Pau to the 76ers for Andre Iguodala, Evan Turner, Elton Brand and the No. 15 Pick

The above trade would most likely make Kobe very happy and therefore would be able to be completed. It would also give the Lakers the ability to draft their point guard of the future (such as Kendal Marshall or Damian Lilliard) and field an extremely young and talented starting five of Marshall, Turner, Iguodala, Hill and Bynum with veterans like Elton Brand and Steve Blake leading the second unit. Nice.

Kobe and Pau to the Knicks for Melo and Amare (Amare would then be moved to Houston for Martin and Scola and perhaps the No. 16 pick)

The above trade would instantly make the Knicks the team to beat in the Eastern Conference, especially as I believe Metta World Peace (after being amnestied) and Lamar Odom would be coming to town via veteran-minimum free-agent contracts, and Phil Jackson would be coaching this team.

The Lakers would also be stacked after completing this trade. They'd have an extremely balanced roster with a dominant big (Bynum), dominant wing (Carmelo), hustler and dirty-work guy (Scola), knock-down perimeter shooter (Martin) and point guard of the future (No. 16 pick). That would be quite a haul indeed.  

Kobe, Pau, Steve Blake and Josh McRoberts to the Bulls for Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer, Taj Gibson, Richard Hamilton, Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer and the No. 29 Pick

The above trade has perhaps the least possibility of happening simply due to the sheer size of the trade. However, the trade is realistic and the value is certainly there for both teams, so one never knows.

All of the above said, I personally believe that right now may be the best and last chance the Lakers have to get maximum value for Kobe Bryant and/or Pau Gasol, and that the most realistic and best trade available would be the Knicks trade.