One of the worst-kept secrets in the NBA is that the Los Angeles Lakers are desperately seeking an upper-echelon big man.
With the Boston Celtics now officially eliminated from the postseason, could the Lakers’ longstanding rival help to fill their biggest need this summer in a trade?
Even prior to Jayson Tatum‘s crushing injury during Game 4 of Boston’s Eastern Conference semifinals series against the New York Knicks, the Celtics were reported to be likely to at least partially blow up their roster this offseason, due to financial constraints.
With the earlier-than-anticipated playoff exit, plus Tatum’s Achilles tear that could keep him out all of the 2025-26 campaign, the chances of a completely different roster in Beantown next fall grew exponentially.
One of the most commonly mentioned big names to be rumored as a trade piece is one-time All-Star center Kristaps Porzingis.
Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey crafted a list of seven trade ideas for “Every Realistic Boston Celtics Target” in a post published on Saturday, with Porzingis being dealt to the Lakers among his proposals.
Trade Would Reunite Porzingis, Luka Doncic
As Bailey notes, while some of his other trade proposals are centered around Boston easing the financial burden of being on track to become the first $500-plus million roster next season, the potential Porzingis move doesn’t exactly fit into that category.
Here’s Bailey’s trade idea:
– Lakers receive: Kristaps Porzingis
– Celtics receive: Maxi Kleber, Rui Hachimura, a 2030 first-round pick swap and a 2032 first-round pick swap
“The playoffs and last couple months of Kristaps Porziņģis’ 2024-25 campaign was completely derailed by a virus, but the healthy KP remains one of the best and most versatile big men in the league,” he wrote. “And while the Porziņģis/Luka Dončić duo didn’t quite jell with the Dallas Mavericks, both have likely been humbled a bit by the last few years. And chasing a title alongside LeBron James could have them more focused on that than on who gets the credit for the success.”
Porzingis averaged 19.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 28.8 minutes per game in the regular season while shooting a career-best 41.2% on three-pointers.
He missed 40 contests, however, and hasn’t played more than 65 tilts in a season since his second year in the league in 2026-17.
Maxi Kleber was sent to the Lakers as a part of the shocking Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade in February and finished the year posting career lows in points (3.0) and rebounds per contest (2.8), as well as games played (34) and started (four).
The 33-year-old only suited up once with Los Angeles this year, playing five minutes in the team’s season-ending loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the first round of the playoffs in late April.
Hachimura registered 13.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and career-high 31.7 minutes per game across 59 contests (57 starts) during his second full season with the Lakers.
Porzingis Would be ‘Dramatic Upgrade’ For Lakers
After shipping Davis to the Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles struggled mightily against team’s with elite big men for the rest of the season.
That was most obviously the case in the Lakers’ final contest of the year, when Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert dominated them to the tune of 27 points and 24 rebounds.
Bailey explained how he felt the proposed Celtics-Lakers blockbuster could help both sides out.
“More to the point, the Los Angeles Lakers just need a real center. Porziņģis provides shot blocking, floor spacing and the occasional post-up. And he’d be a dramatic upgrade over Jaxson Hayes,” he wrote. “For Boston, this one isn’t as much about financial flexibility. Porziņģis’ deal expires after 2025-26, but draft assets are valuable. And Rui Hachimura would give them a slightly younger forward than KP, who could theoretically fit alongside Tatum in positionless forward combinations (assuming the Celtics were to sign him beyond this season).”
With no NBA franchise even without shouting range of Boston’s 18 championships or Los Angeles’ 17, a move like this could significantly alter both team’s chances at earning another title.
