Lakers could acquire six-time All-Star from Kings for this two-player package

The Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings are in very different phases as franchises, which makes them convenient trade partners.

The Lakers are trying to squeeze as much value out of LeBron James before he retires, and LA has little concern for the future as they look to surround James with enough talent to vie for one more ring. The King is still playing at a high level, but Father Time is undefeated and LA probably has another season and half of the James era left.

After a rough start to the season, the Kings are looking to keep their future with De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis looking bright. Sacramento is 9-2 under interim head coach Doug Christie and has re-entered the playoff picture, but it's probably frivolous to call them fringe contenders without a larger sample size.

With Fox due for a colossal payday following next season, the Kings should be looking to shed salary if they plan on retaining their stud point guard.

Moving on from the DeMar DeRozan experiment now might be a wise move while DeRozan's value is still solid. The 35-year-old DeRozan is signed up for two years with the Kings following this season, meaning he'll be making over $25 million during his age-37 season.

DeRozan's still got game, as a 32-point masterclass on Wednesday night versus the Golden State Warriors indicated.

A team like the Lakers would love to bring DeRozan aboard, especially with his timeline matching up with LeBron's. 

By trading DeRozan (a Compton native, by the way) to the Lakers, the Kings could turn DeRozan into younger and cheaper assets that still add to winning.

A two-player package of Rui Hachimura (26 years old) and Max Christie (21) works financially in exchange for DeRozan.

Hachimura's current deal expires a year earlier than DeRozan's and Christie -- though signed through a 2027-28 player option -- isn't making more than $9 million per season during that stretch, which is excellent value for a young, promising shooting guard with current value as a rotational player.

If the Kings feel they can contend this year with DeRozan, they'll shy away from a trade like this. But if Sacramento is being more realistic about the current season and looking to establish real continuity in the Sabonis-Fox era, this trade would be smart to consider.

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