"Should the D'Angelo Russell Trade be Pursued After Exercising Contract Option?"

According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Los Angeles Lakers are likely to actively pursue trade opportunities involving D'Angelo Russell this offseason. Russell himself confirmed to Dave McMenamin of ESPN that he will be opting into his current contract. The Lakers are currently focused on resolving LeBron James' situation, as he has a player option worth $51.4 million for the upcoming season that needs to be addressed today, just before the start of free agency on Sunday. If James decides to opt out, as anticipated, McMenamin reported that the Lakers are prepared to offer him a three-year maximum contract to retain his services. With James on board and factoring in Russell's contract, Bobby Marks of ESPN pointed out that the Lakers will have only $4.8 million left under the second apron in free agency, potentially needing to spend more to keep Max Christie as a restricted free agent.

There is a potential large market for Russell among teams in need of a point guard who may have missed out on one during free agency. According to a report by The Athletic's Kelly Iko last month, the Orlando Magic could be interested in pursuing the veteran guard if he chooses to opt out.

At one point, the Brooklyn Nets were considering a reunion with Russell. However, their decision to embark on a rebuilding phase after trading Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks for five future first-round draft picks, a pick swap, a future second-round pick, and the expiring contract of Bojan Bogdanović may impact those plans.

Russell is arguably the Lakers' most valuable trade asset now that he has opted in. The 28-year-old will be playing on an expiring contract and is coming off two consecutive strong seasons. He has averaged 17.9 points on 40.6 percent shooting from beyond the arc and 6.3 assists per game in 147 games since the beginning of the 2022-23 season.