The Los Angeles Lakers had made a great start to the season and were looking like outside contenders early on. Since then, their form has declined drastically and they now once again have the look of a play-in team, at best. As LeBron approaches his 40th birthday, Father Time finally appears to be catching up with him.

He is still a great player but clearly nowhere near his legendary best anymore and one should not expect him to be either. If the Lakers are to rescue their season, they might need to make some moves. It has been widely reported that they could be looking to add a center to their roster.

Could a Chicago Bulls veteran be the answer to their problems?

Nikola Vucevic has exceeded all expectations so far this season. After an underwhelming 2023-24 campaign, many felt that the veteran center was on the decline. Instead, he is putting up some of the best numbers of his career right now.

Vucevic is currently averaging 21.7 points, 9.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 31.9 minutes per night while also shooting a remarkable 59.2% from the field and 46.8% from three-point range. Of course, at 34 years of age, there are limitations to Vucevic’s game. But one cannot argue with his output this season. He might be playing his way out of Chicago, who are seemingly aiming for a rebuild.

A mock trade put together by Andrew Hanlon in Pippen Ain’t Easy would see the Lakers receive Vucevic for D’Angelo Russell, Cam Reddish, 2025 Second-Round Pick (Via LAC), 2030 Second-Round Pick and 2031 Second-Round Pick Swap. Of course, neither Russell nor Reddish are expected to be long-term solutions for the Bulls but the picks could certainly help them with the swap being a sweetener. There’s not a lot more they can expect in a Vucevic trade at this point in his career despite his form.