Let me know what y'all think! Is this fair value? (genuinely interested to hear opinions on Lauri/Lavine trade value rn)
Why this could happen:
Kings: This team needs needs needs a shake-up and to go get players who fit Sabonis's play style. Not that Lavine does not fit this, but the Kings have many other shooting guards who fit this role, and this salary could be used to find a power forward, which this team really needs. If the Kings cannot get Kuminga, I could see them pivot to Lauri to fill this role. For the price of Lavine and SRPs, I think this trade could get done. Lauri's contract is massive and honestly probably an overpay, but I think getting him next to Sabonis could massively help his value. As I have said before, moving Keegan to the 3 would also help him increase his value IMO. The problem with this trade is that the new King's frontcourt has 0 defense. To top off this offseason, the Kings trade DeRozan back to the Bulls, as well as 2 FRPs to the Bulls, to get one year of cheap Coby White before needing to pay him. Trading DeRozan away allows Keon Ellis to start and get a lot more PT, which I know many Kings fans want. I believe this reshuffling of asses will help the kings be more successful in the crowded west, although I still don't have a lot of faith in them. Yes, the Kings do give up a lot of picks, but they still retain most of their own picks and the juicy 2031 Minnesota FRP.
Bulls: Bring back a fan favorite and save long-term money in addition to getting two first-round picks. The Bulls have already shown reluctance in resigning their RFAs (Giddey), and it doesn't seem like they are very interested in keeping Coby either. Getting some assets for him while they continue the all-mid team would be a massive dub, allowing them to build more clearly around Mattas, Noa, and (possibly) Giddey. Jevon Carter is thrown in to make the money work.
Jazz: Despite their mismanagement of assets in this off-season, they admit they want to get off Lauri's contract and build around younger players. In trading Lauri for LaVine, they save two years of money, and also clear the young power forwards to get more playing time. They get the additional bonus that if they can recoup Lavine's value, he might actually become a positive asset as the cap increases. Don't get me wrong, LaVine is not bad by any means, but his contract projects him to be a top 20 player, which he is not. In addition to Lavine, the jazz receive SRPs as additional compensation.
At the end of the day, I think this trade helps all three teams get better/ find a more well-defined future direction while acquiring additional draft picks.