:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69022681/1308945892.0.jpg)
With the NBA trade deadline less than 24 hours away, there have been plenty of reports about what the Lakers might be getting set to do, but on Tuesday night, head coach Frank Vogel didn’t sound convinced that the team would be making a move.
“There’s always types of players that can help you, but the biggest thing is we just have to get healthy,” Vogel said. “Those conversations are up to the front office. My expectation is that we’re going to win games with this group. I believe in this group that we have.”
The group the Lakers have right now has yet to win a game without LeBron James and Anthony Davis this season, and they’re set to be missing both for a while longer. But they also obviously aren’t going to be able to make any moves that replace those two stars, and so any help they do bring in at the deadline will likely just be more role players that will make this team better around James and Davis, but probably not improve them a ton in the interim. There is also the possibility they make no significant moves, and wait for the buyout market, something that has been reported to be the team’s preference.
Vogel says that whatever the deadline holds, the Lakers will be ready to try and get wins with what they have.
“If nothing happens, we’re going to figure out a way to win games during this stretch, and it will benefit us during the long run,” Vogel said. “Most trade deadlines there’s a lot of talks that result in nothing, and that’s my expectation as a coach.”
We’ll see if this one follows that trend when the deadline comes at 12:00 p.m. PT on Thursday.
For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.