Lonzo Ball’s value around the league has a higher variance than few other players. For some, he’s an injury-prone player with too many yellow flags on and off the court to make up for what he brings to the table. For others, he’s a dynamic player that could be a contributor on a contending team.

While the Lakers clearly fall in the second of those two categories, they aren’t the only teams who value Ball’s services. And with Los Angeles likely to still be superstar chasing this summer, the team could dangle Ball for a more valued asset by all teams like, say, a draft pick.

From the Chicago Sun-Times:

The Sun-Times reported last month that if the Bulls slip into the No. 3 to No. 6 range, they could check with the Lakers about the availability of point guard Lonzo Ball in a trade.

There are only a few reasons the Lakers would entertain this trade and none is bigger than one in New Orleans. As it stands, Ball’s trade value variance largely stems from his inability to stay on the court. If they truly want to make a hard push for Anthony Davis, offloading him for a draft pick, an asset with much more stable value, would make sense.

Outside of that, though, it would make little sense for the Lakers to offload Ball now. Any draft pick comes with an amount of uncertainty. While there are still questions about Ball’s future, he’s a proven defender and a stable contributor for an NBA team. As much of a sure thing as a prospect might look in the draft, he’s still an uncertainty until he steps on the court.

Outside of Zion Williamson, no prospect in the upcoming draft is a sure-enough bet that it makes sense to trade Ball. At best with the third pick, the Lakers could land Ja Morant and, as exciting as he was in the NCAA Tournament, he would not be anywhere near as good a fit next to LeBron James and a potential third superstar.

In reality, the only way the Lakers make this deal is if it’s as part of a three-team trade with the Pelicans and Bulls. Chicago was mentioned as a potential third team in a Davis trade during the trade deadline. Until then, this is nothing more than mild speculation.