How did the NBA Trade Deadline hurt the Lakers?

Even though the franchise was faced with months of trade rumors, the Los Angeles Lakers chose to make zero trades before the buzzer sounded on the NBA trade deadline. Other squads who are facing similar struggles to the Lakers and have the stars needed to win the NBA title, decided to go all-in and make moves with the intent of going far this season.

One highly aggressive franchise was the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavericks were in a similar situation with draft capital but the squad still decided to trade one of the few remaining picks that they had for P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford. Unlike the Lakers who choose to wait until the summer to fix their issues, the Mavericks decided to invest in their stars now.

The Suns also made a move to improve their depth at the forward spot by trading for Royce O'Neale. The Thunder traded for Gordon Hayward. The Timberwolves bolstered their bench with Monte Morris. Unlike these teams, the Lakers made no moves and it's fair to question whether they will regret not doing anything at the deadline.

Are the Lakers going regret not making any deals at the deadline?

Lakers management is probably not going to regret being cautious since the franchise would have lost draft picks that they could have traded for stars this offseason. They have been rumored to be on the hunt for Donovan Mitchell and even if James leaves they could still chase another star to pair with Anthony Davis.

The Lakers will probably run out this season with the core that they have. While the squad hopes that they can win the title, they will most likely fall short at some point with their struggles coming from a lack of veterans around James and Davis who can play minutes in the playoffs without offering some huge advantage to the other team.