The Los Angeles Lakers lost out on De’Andre Hunter and Keon Ellis once they swapped sides in the first trade before the deadline passed. After the latest news, their options might be exhausted even further. The reports come from Marc Stein regarding the Dallas Mavericks’ strategy at the trade deadline. They still plan on being sellers, but not for the players the Lakers are after.

They wanted to reunite Luka Doncic with Naji Marshall. The Dallas forward is having a breakout season and would be capable of injecting some life into the Lakers’ low-output bench. But Stein claims the Mavericks aren’t looking at trading Marshall, instead eyeing other stars as trade chips.

“I’m told that Dallas does not want to trade Naji Marshall or Christie — who arrived in Dallas alongside Davis — while continuing to explore potential moves involving Daniel Gafford, Klay Thompson and D’Angelo Russell,” Stein wrote.

Marshall fits the Mavericks’ current mission of building around Cooper Flagg. He’s been sensational since becoming a consistent starter, averaging 17.5 points in January. Instead, Dallas is looking to offload some of its veterans to free some salary space. That could be used to facilitate important business in the summer, by which time Kyrie Irving will be a definite presence on the floor.

It’s a huge hit for the Lakers, who are after some defensive assistance. Despite their 29-19 record, the team is among the top five worst defenses this season. The poor exchange has left the Lakers having to overly rely on Luka Doncic and their offensive firepower to get results. Rob Pelinka can still bring a defensive specialist. The Pelicans’ Herb Jones is a possible target, but they will need them to give up a future first-round pick.

Also coming from the Mavericks is their openness to part ways with Anthony Davis. The veteran big man has been linked to several moves due to his injury tendencies. According to Shams Charania, the Toronto Raptors and the Hawks have shown interest in the 12-time All-Star as the Mavs listen to calls.

The Lakers are still unaware of their potential

The mid-season trade window is much different than the summer. Teams have to be confident that a change is needed for them to flourish during the ongoing trade deadline. The Lakers don’t see themselves in that position because they’ve never been healthy for large stretches.

It started with LeBron James missing 14 games at the start of the season. Then Austin Reaves went down and has now missed 19 straight games with a calf strain. With the injury battles they have had to fend off, James admitted it’s hard to predict the current group’s ceiling.

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“It’s been tough all season as far as dealing with injuries. Guys in and guys out. Unfortunately, our All-Star 2-guard has been out for a minute, and that’s a big piece of our team. So, it’s kind of hard to see what we can really, truly be,” he told ESPN after suffering a loss to the Knicks.

Austin Reaves is that influential piece. He’s averaged 26.6 points this season, a massive jump from his previous years. However, the Lakers’ trio has only appeared in eight games together. With so little data, committing big to any target becomes a potential risk. What if Reaves’ return proves that having an agile center could benefit the team much more than a 3-and-D wing?

Hence, with the prime targets off the board, the Lakers might prepare for a quiet deadline. They could make some minor moves to improve their depth. But the main work will be done over the summer, when they have cap space and the draft capital to find a long-term fix for their prevailing issues.