The Lakers want to exchange 3 for Holiday 1, but the defenders gathered in Rivers and may become victims

Recently, there have been rumors of explosive transactions in the NBA. The focus of this time is the Lakers, and the target they are coveting is the powerful defender Holiday, who is a powerful character with a championship ring. Some American media had a sudden idea and created a seemingly reliable trading plan: the Lakers wanted to use Hachimura Hiroshi, Vincent and Kneckett to exchange for Holiday of the Bucks. Coincidentally, Grant Afseth, a famous reporter a few days ago, also reported that several sources revealed to FastbreakJournal that Zhu Holiday is a trading target worthy of attention, and may especially become a potential recruitment target for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Let's first take a closer look at the chips that the Lakers have taken out in this trade. Hachimura Hira, born on February 8, 1998, is 27 years old, 202 cm tall, weighs 104 kg, and the current contract salary is US$17 million. In the 2024-2025 season, he played 59 games for the Lakers, including 57 starts, averaging 31.6 minutes per game, scoring 13.1 points, 5 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.4 blocks, with a shooting percentage of 50.0% and a three-point shooting percentage of 41.0%. In the past two seasons, Hachimura Shira's performance in the Lakers was quite unsatisfactory. As a forward player, he has the ability to score and occasionally becomes a surprise in the playoffs, but his stability still has a lot of room for improvement.

Vincent was born on June 14, 1996, 29 years old, playing as a point guard, 188 cm tall, weighing 90.7 kg, and holding a three-year contract of $33 million. In the 2024-2025 season, due to injuries, his number of appearances was limited, and the reference value of average data was not very valuable. Looking back on his performance with the Heat, he is an important firepower point on the team's bench. After joining the Lakers, he worked very hard on the defensive end, but his performance on the offensive end was fluctuating greatly. He was able to score key balls when he was in good condition, and when he was in poor condition, he was like stealth on the court.

Knector is a young player born on April 19, 2001. He is 24 years old and has a height of 1.98 meters and a weight of 92 kilograms. He can play the role of a forward guard. In the 2024 NBA Draft, he was selected by the Lakers with the No. 17 first round, and then signed a four-year rookie contract of $18.48 million. His annual salary will be $4.01 million, $4.2 million and $6.45 million in the next three seasons. In the regular season of the 2024-2025 season, Kneckett maintained a stable attendance rate, averaging 19.1 minutes per game in 78 games, contributing 9.1 points and 2.8 rebounds, shooting percentage of 46.1%, three-point shooting percentage of 37.6%, and free throw shooting percentage of 76.2%. He only won 2 games in the playoffs, averaging 2.5 points and 1.5 rebounds in 1.8 minutes per game, with shooting and three-point shooting percentages of 40% and 25% respectively.

As a typical scorer, Knector has outstanding highlights on the offensive end: his shooting skills are solid, he can shoot at any position in the game, and he can hit continuously when he feels hot; he runs actively without the ball, is good at taking the ball with cover, and has a balanced left and right hands, and has good efficiency in ending near the frame. However, he also has obvious shortcomings, such as insufficient defensive position selection and discipline, which is easy to be broken through by opponents, and has weak ability to squeeze and cover; his offensive ability is limited, his dribbling center of gravity is relatively high, and he is prone to make mistakes in a small space. Most of the time, he is more inclined to end the offense by himself. In the 2025 Summer League, Kneckett played 6 games for the Lakers, averaging 27.6 minutes per game, contributing 11.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.2 steals, but his shooting percentage was only 32.1%, and his three-point shooting percentage was as low as 23.7%. His offensive efficiency was poor and his shooting performance was much lower than expected. He used to be a scoring expert, but now he is questioned, and his future position in the team has become confusing. The Lakers want Holiday is now 35 years old, 193 cm tall and weighs 88.5 kg. The contract has nearly 100 million in three years. The salary in the next two years will be $32 million and $34 million respectively. There are still 37 million player options in 2027. In 62 games in the 2024-2025 season, he averaged 11.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game, shooting percentage of 44.3%, three-point shooting percentage of 35.3%, and free throw shooting percentage of up to 90.9%. Holiday is recognized as a defender in the league with a combination of offense and defense. He has a variety of offensive methods, can break through, shoot three-pointers, and has excellent passing vision. On the defensive end, he can cause great trouble to the opponent's core defenders with his excellent physical conditions and defensive awareness. In addition, he has championship experience and stable performance at critical moments, his strength cannot be underestimated.

For the Lakers, if they can get Holiday, their strength in the backcourt will definitely be greatly improved. Cooperating with James and Doncic, the team will be more competitive on both offense and defense, and the hope of winning the championship will also increase greatly. However, if you send away players like Hachimura who have the ability to fight, the team's rotation depth will inevitably be affected.

If the Trail Blazers agree to this deal, they can get Hachimura to supplement the striker, Vincent can also increase the rotation options in the backcourt, and Kneckett can also reserve talents for the team's future. Even if you lose a core player like Holiday, the team's strength will not have much impact.

If the deal can be completed, the Lakers' back line will be quite thick - they have signed defensive champion Smart, plus the existing Doncic and Rivers. If Holiday is added, Rivers Jr. may become a victim. After all, he will have a big contract after his contract expires, and the Lakers are unable to bear it. Moreover, his ceiling is limited, and average 20+5+5 per game is the limit, and his defensive efficiency is not high. With two defenders, Smart and Holiday, they can just make up for Doncic's defensive shortcomings.. If Rivers is exchanged for the powerful forward line, the Lakers' chances of competing for the championship will increase greatly. If the deal takes shape next season, the Lakers will be ranked in the five starting points next season, Holiday, Doncic, Smart, James and Ayton, and their defensive strength will be further improved, which will be more conducive to the good ranking.