Lakers officials claim that the team decided against making a trade deadline move because the season was “beyond salvation.”

According to Lakers Daily’s Anthony Irwin, several officials of the Los Angeles Lakers organization have stated that the team decided against making a move at the trade deadline because they believed the season was “beyond salvation.”

The Lakers, who suffered the loss of forward Jarred Vanderbilt on February 1st, were said to have thought that Vanderbilt’s injury would finish the season, which could have affected the team’s prospects going forward.

“A few people in the organization have even clarified that the Lakers’ lack of activity at the deadline was partly caused by their belief that this season was unsalvageable following his injury, which they initially believed to be season-ending,” Irwin wrote.

Christian Wood, Gabe Vincent, and Vanderbilt could be sidelined for the rest of the 2023–24 campaign.

The Lakers were busy at the trade deadline the previous season, completing several trades to bring in players including Mo Bamba, Rui Hachimura, Malik Beasley, D’Angelo Russell, and Vanderbilt. The Lakers finally advanced to the Western Conference Finals after making those plays that helped the team secure the seventh seed in the Western Conference.

However, Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka and the rest of the front office decided to remain unchanged this season, despite the team’s success in 2022–23 thanks to late-season adjustments.

The team’s major midseason addition was guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who was acquired by the Toronto Raptors in a deadline deal with the Brooklyn Nets after being bought out.

The Lakers may not have thought that the upgrading was worth the prospective asset cost at the deadline, but it seems that the organization was also concerned about its future after losing Vanderbilt.

Vanderbilt, a defensive stalwart for the Lakers, had a heel injury at the start of the season. Due to his limited playing time this season—just 29 games—the Lakers are forced to depend more heavily on players like Taurean Prince, Cam Reddish, and Hachimura.

Similar to last season, Los Angeles still has a potential to go far in the playoffs, but if Vincent, Wood, and Vanderbilt are unable to play this year, other players will need to step up.

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