3 different ways the Lakers can approach the NBA Trade Deadline

Like many NBA teams, the Los Angeles Lakers are facing a quandary as the NBA trade deadline approaches. Should general manager Rob Pelinka be aggressive in the hopes that he can put together a team that can compete for a championship? Or does he protect future assets by taking a conservative approach? Are there any alternative options?

Pelinka is facing pressure from his two biggest stars, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, to add pieces in the next two weeks, but at the end of the day, he's the one that has to choose the right course of action for the organization.

Today we're looking at all of the choices that Pelinka will face, as well as the ramifications of going down each potential path. In a world where multiversal storytelling has become all the rage (thanks Marvel), this is our own version. Let's call it "Into the Lakerverse."

Lakers Trade Deadline Option No. 1: Go all-in

This is what LeBron and AD want. Go out and get a center so Davis can play the 4, someone like Jonas Valanciunas or Jakob Poeltl. Add a scoring wing that can handle the ball like CJ McCollum or Zach LaVine. Throw it all at the wall and see what sticks.

Taking this approach will drain L.A. of its future picks and swaps (and probably someone like Rui Hachimura), but it would signal to the team and the fanbase that ownership believes in what they can achieve right now. The West is strong, but all of the top teams are lacking in past playoff success. The Thunder crashed out as the 1-seed last year. The Rockets and Grizzlies weren't even in the playoffs. On paper, the experience of the Lakers, especially with a major piece or two added, could be enough to get to the Finals.

Adding a real center alongside Davis would give the Lakers a much better chance against the team that has owned them more than any other: the Denver Nuggets. Nikola Jokic has been beyond unstoppable lately, and now that Jamal Murray has regained his All-Star form and Russell Westbrook has reinvented himself for the umpteenth time, the Nuggets are looking like a real threat. If the Lakers can't overcome their nemesis, everything else is moot. As currently constructed, that's probably not going to happen.

Lakers Trade Deadline Option No. 2: Stand pat

The Lakers have traditionally been very aggressive in pursuing stars and championships. They're the NBA equivalent of Ricky Bobby's dad — if you ain't first, you're last.

There's no denying that this strategy has worked more often than not in the past, and on the few occasions when it hasn't the penalty has never been too severe. The Lakers have the built-in advantage of being one of the most famous teams in a huge media market. If they make a bad move and need to blow things up, there'll always be another star ready to sign or force a trade there next year.

Any poker player could tell you that unless you're bluffing, you don't push all-in with a bad hand. There's no way to bluff in the NBA, so if Pelinka doesn't think the Lakers are good enough to compete, it would be foolhardy to chase good money with bad. Ride it out with the current roster, see what happens in the playoffs, then reload over the summer. Given that L.A. is the only West playoff team with a negative point differential, nobody could fault him for that.

Pelinka has to assess whether any players that are attainable right now would put this team over the top. If he determines that they wouldn't, a new batch of guys will inevitably become available between now and the next trade deadline. Save your assets for then.

Lakers Trade Deadline Option No. 3: Sell it all

This is the nuclear option, and we should say up front that it's never going to happen. Bill Simmons proposed on his podcast this week that the Lakers should trade Davis and pivot towards a rebuild. If that happens, LeBron would be as good as gone too, because he's still way too good to be taking on the Udonis Haslem memorial team grandfather role.

This is an interesting hypothetical that has certainly been at least whispered in the darkest corners of Crypto.com Arena, but let's be real. The Lakers are the fifth seed in the West, not a team that's 10 games under .500. The Mavericks came under fire for essentially forfeiting a play-in spot in the final week of the season a few years ago. The Lakers would be raked over the coals if they decided to punt on a season in which they're currently leading their division.

What would the market be for AD and LeBron? Even at their advanced ages, the Lakers could probably get a huge haul in return. The Grizzlies have expressed interest in Jimmy Butler. You think they wouldn't prefer LeBron? Wouldn't the Rockets love to have AD playing the 4 next to Alperen Sengun? Every contending team would kick the tires if the Lakers gave any indication that they were interested in selling.

It's fun to think about, but let's not waste too much time in fantasyland.

What should the Lakers do?

From where Lakers fans are standing, they have to know that there isn't much time left in the LeBron era. We all saw how sad the end of Kobe's career was as the team around him faltered, and no Lakers fan wants to go through that again.

Winning a championship or even making the Finals is a long shot no matter what moves the Lakers make, but you can't say they wouldn't at least have a puncher's chance if they pushed all-in right now. LeBron and AD can hit a different gear in the playoffs, Jarred Vanderbilt will soon be back to pair with Dorian Finney-Smith as a dynamic defensive duo, and whatever additional pieces come on board would help JJ Redick put out a quality starting lineup every night around LeBron, Davis and Austin Reaves.

The Lakers go for it. It's what they do. Why change now?