NBA Trade Rumors: Would Tony Parker to the L.A. Lakers Make Sense?
Recently Tony Parker spoke with a French newspaper called L'Equipe. In it he stated the following:
"At the start of the season I said this was our last chance. We will always have a good team but we can no longer say that we're playing for a championship."
The star point guard is now aging and he feels that because the rest of the Spurs' core is aging with him they no longer have a chance to win a championship.
This may be a stretch. The Spurs did win 61 games this season. They ran into a Memphis team that they didn't match up well against at all. It's not like the Spurs can't pull off another 50+ win season next year and get hot at the right time and make a run for the title.
But Parker does have a point, as it makes it a lot more difficult when the core of the team is getting even older. Also, with a lockout looming who knows if they'll even play next year. The next time the team steps on the hardwood they might be two years older.
As a result, the Spurs might try to make a move to add youth to the roster.
The Lakers are going to be looking for a point guard and Chris Paul might be a little too costly. So why not Tony Parker?
Sure, Parker is aging, but we've all seen Jason Kidd in his late early 30s dominate opponents in the playoffs this season. Chauncey Billups is passed his prime yet he was extremely productive with the Knicks. Parker still has plenty of value and he can provide Kobe and the Lakers with a huge spark. He's still quick, and he really won't have to be the main guy because the Lakers have Pau, Bynum and Bryant. He can just facilitate the offense and help with ball movement. Nobody is asking him to score. He can be the Rondo of the Lakers. Forget scoring. Just facilitate and make life easier for the rest of the team.
The Lakers will probably have to mortgage their future by sending a couple of draft picks and perhaps even parting ways with Lamar Odom and/or Shannon Brown. Lamar's price may be too high and Shannon's skill level might be too low for the Spurs to even consider pulling off a trade like that with the Lakers. Other teams can probably make better offers.
But it remains an interesting question. If the Spurs were willing to do it, would you welcome a Lamar Odom or Ron Artest trade for Tony Parker?
We all know the last Parker who wore a Laker jersey will live forever in infamy, but this Parker has rings, experience, quickness, and a high basketball IQ. More importantly, he has respectively fresher legs than Derek Fisher and this should help the Lakers immensely. The Lakers really could've used solid play from the point guard position in the sweep against Dallas. Also, putting Fisher on the bench means the Lakers will have an experienced veteran running the most important position at all times.
What do you all think?
