Lakers Rumors: Trade for Center Eyed Amid Jarred Vanderbilt, Christian Wood Injuries | News, scores, highlights, stats and rumors

The Los Angeles Lakers are reportedly exploring a trade for a center as Jarred Vanderbilt and Christian Wood continue to recover from offseason procedures, ESPN analyst Shams Charania said Thursday on NBA today.

“Sources tell me the Lakers have been exploring the possibility of adding a big man, a center, to their roster,” Charania said. “I don’t know exactly when that will take place, but they have started looking at the market.”

Vanderbilt’s status for the Lakers’ season opener on Oct. 22 is in question after he missed training camp and the subsequent preseason procedures on each of his feet. Wood, meanwhile, is expected to miss Game 1 after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in September.

That leaves the Lakers’ center depth chart thin behind starter Anthony Davis. Currently, Jaxson Hayes, who averaged 4.3 points in 12.5 minutes per night as Davis’ backup, is the only other roster player available for the season opener.

Colin Castleton, who made 16 NBA appearances last season, and rookie Armel Traore are both on two-way contracts with the G League’s South Bay Lakers and could be called up to fill out the depth chart.

Another possible two-way option is Christian Koloko, who last played for the Toronto Raptors in 2022-23 before being sidelined with a blood clot issue and signing with the Lakers in September. But head coach JJ Redick told reporters last week that Koloko has not yet been cleared to play.

Charania said he and ESPN’s Dave McMenamin heard that Lakers team doctors were “confident” Koloko would be cleared, but that the clearance “is still an ongoing process.”

Koloko’s status will be “an important factor to watch” regarding the Lakers’ decision to trade for more center depth, Charania concluded.

Redick has said several times since his hiring that he would like to give Anthony Davis minutes in the starting lineup, something the star has reportedly asked his organization to grant him for years.

The Lakers coach told reporters earlier this week that playing Davis at power forward would allow the team to use his switching skills on perimeter players, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic.

That plan would involve deploying Hayes at the 5 and would likely require more center depth than the Lakers currently have on the roster.

If Redick wants to achieve his goal of implementing Davis’ skills at power forward while Wood and Vanderbilt are still unable to play, the first-year head coach may want to convince Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka to make the center move he is reportedly considering .