Lakers projected starting lineup after busy NBA Trade Deadline [UPDATED]

Taking a look at the Lakers roster and the projected starting lineup after trading Russell Westbrook for D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley and more. 

As reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Los Angeles Lakers have made the blockbuster trade that the fanbase has been waiting for since the season started.

The Lakers have traded Russell Westbrook, Damian Jones, Juan Toscano-Anderson, and a lightly protected first-round pick in a three-way deal with the Timberwolves and Jazz. In return, LA is getting D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, and Jarred Vanderbilt.

They followed that up with a slew of trades Thursday, acquiring Mo Bamba, Davon Reed and more.

After struggling when LeBron James was on the bench, this team has made serious upgrades at the cost of their long-term future. The Lakers have decided to go all-in with their two superstars, James and Anthony Davis.

Here what’s the starting lineup looks like now after trading for Russell, Beasley and Vanderbilt in this deal on Wednesday night.

Lakers roster: Starting lineup after Russell Westbrook trade nets D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt 

• Guard: D’Angelo Russell
• Guard: Malik Beasley
• Forward: LeBron James
• Forward: Jarred Vanderbilt
• Center: Anthony Davis

The Lakers have seriously upgraded and have a new starting lineup because of it. LA has plenty of good options to start in the backcourt Obviously, the starting point guard will be D’Angelo Russell as he comes over in this deal.

More importantly, the team will now have better guard options off of the bench. Head coach Darvin Ham has loved running three-guard lineups and now he will be able to do that better with the trio of Russell, Beasley, and Austin Reaves.

Reaves might start over Beasley eventually, but for now, let’s put Beasley over Reaves because the latter is still recovering from injury and only played seven minutes in the loss against the Thunder (and his first game back due to injury). LeBron James will clearly start at three and it is a bit unclear who they would start at the 4.

Jarred Vanderbilt and Rui Hachimura are two good picks for who will start at the other big spot as both are good players who fill a role. Vanderbilt’s 3-point shooting might give him an edge but it also wouldn’t be surprising to see Ham opt for Hachimura because of his ability to create.

Anthony Davis will start at the center position and continue playing All-NBA basketball. However, Bamba is a great backup with his shooting and rim protection and he may play some minutes next to Davis in certain matchups.

All told, though, the Lakers are a substantially better roster after this trade.