With the trade deadline nearing, eyes continue to be on the Los Angeles Lakers and whether or not they will make another move. Among the possible trade targets, one that has likely been mentioned most is Detroit Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic.
Bogdanovic is enjoying perhaps the best season of his career, averaging a career-high 21.2 points in Detroit while shooting 41.2 percent from 3-point range. His offensive skillset has made him one of the most sought-after players ahead of the deadline with the Lakers being one of many who have their eye on him.
But Bogdanovic himself seems to be just fine with staying in Detroit, and they may want to keep him. The Lakers’ trade target revealed to HoopsHype that the Pistons front office and ownership have insisted that they plan on competing next season and he believes in that vision:
“Having conversations with the club, Troy (Weaver), and the owners, they assured me that we’re going to be great next year,” Bogdanovic told HoopsHype. “We have a lot of cap space to sign great players. We’re going to have a high pick again, so that’s going to help us a lot. We have a great young group of guys. When Cade (Cunningham) went down, that kind of hurt us big time. We were thinking that maybe we’d be fighting for the play-in tournament, but when he went down, he was our main guy. All of our offensive strategies were connected to him. When he went down, our season, we’ve had a lot of ups and downs without him.”
There is no doubt that the Pistons losing Cade Cunningham threw a wrench into any hopes they had of competing this season. But with Cunningham and Jaden Ivey, the Pistons do have a solid foundation that they could build upon this summer.
But that won’t stop the rumors from floating around, especially at this time of year. Bogdanovic stated that he doesn’t pay attention to those whispers about the Lakers or any other team trying to acquire him:
“I heard the rumors, but I’m trying to stay away from those conversations,” Bogdanovic told HoopsHype. “I don’t even have any social media like Twitter. I don’t read much about that. It’s not in my control. It’s about the franchises. I’m just going to try and stay focused and play as best I can. Then, we’ll see what’s going to happen at the end of the trade deadline.”
There is still a good chance Bogdanovic could be moved if a team is willing to give up what Detroit is looking for, which is an unprotected first-round pick. The Lakers have been hesitant to do that but will be one of many keeping tabs on the situation leading up to the Feb. 9 deadline.
Lakers trade target Myles Turner signs extension with Indiana Pacers
Another target that had long been rumored as a potential acquisition for the Lakers is officially off the board as big man Myles Turner agreed to a two-year extension with the Indiana Pacers. Turner’s play along with the unexpected success of the Pacers this season has led to the two sides coming together on this new deal.
The deal includes a $17 million raise this season from the Pacers’ open salary cap space with another $40 million over the next two seasons, keeping Turner with the Pacers through 2025.
More must-reads: