Just yesterday, the US media exposed a fierce news that Kyle Kuzma, who is rumored to be currently playing for the Washington Wizards, is expected to return to the Lakers. For this deal, the Lakers have also made preliminary inquiries.
Putting together recent news, Kuzma has become one of the hottest players in the medium-term trading market. So far this season, the Wizards have only an 11-18 record, ranking 12th in the East. However, the team's poor record cannot hide Kuzma's dazzling single-point performance.
So far in the regular season, Kuzma has averaged 21.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, and his personal output is undoubtedly quite high. And this kind of high-quality 3D is not only extremely scarce in the market, but also many championship teams in the league are eager to replenish.
The Lakers want Kuzma, which is actually not surprising from a realistic point of view. Because, just before the scandal between the Lakers and Kuzma, it was revealed that the Zijin Army also took a fancy to Pistons' small forward Bojan Bogdanovich. Although Kuzma is slightly inferior to Bojan in terms of projection stability, Kuzma has obvious advantages in terms of athleticism and age.
Therefore, instead of poaching Bojan and trading a similar price for Kuzma, in exchange for the young man that the Lakers once cultivated, it naturally became a reliable plan.
Of course, if the Lakers really want to start a trade for Kuzma, then the team's boss Pelinka is undoubtedly quite complicated. After all, it was he who led the big deal of Kuzma, Pope and Harrell for Wilson more than 1 year ago, and it was because of this deal that the Lakers have been in a slump for more than a year.
Now, the situation of the Lakers has finally improved, but Pelinka wants to poach Kuzma through a trade, such a mysterious operation is not only a slap in the face, I am afraid it is also another fluctuation in the Lakers' military heart.
Moreover, before Kuzma left the Lakers, his role in the team was quite awkward, due to the shrinkage of the scene, he could not release all his talent, and he did not seem to be so comfortable when partnering with James and Thick Eyebrows.
But it is undeniable that because of his handsome face and good ball skills, Kuzma has a relatively strong fan base when playing for the Lakers, and for this young man, Lakers owner Jenny Buss is also quite favored. Moreover, in essence, Kuzma is not a striker with a lot of possession of the ball, and as long as he has the will to reintegrate, then his rejuvenation in Hamm's system is not an unattainable goal.
In addition, Kuzma will become a free agent by next summer, and the initial forecast for his new contract will start at $20-25 million a year. Therefore, any team trading Kuzma should not only consider short-term benefits, but also consider whether he can be part of the core framework of the team from a long-term perspective.
But just next summer, the Lakers will have enough salary space to complete Kuzma's contract extension, and on a financial level, they also have the ability to meet Kuzma's contract extension requirements. And perhaps realizing the benefits of this series, Kuzma took the initiative to transmit autumn waves to his old club regardless of previous suspicions.
In his latest tweet, Kuzma wrote, "There's nothing better to feel when you get off the plane than when you get off the plane like a California breeze." Clearly, Kuzma still wants to return to playing in Los Angeles, and more than a year away hasn't left him bored and alienated from his old club. And in the face of Kuzma's obvious signal on social media to "return to the Lakers", I wonder how the Zijin Army will respond?