The biggest roster weakness the Los Angeles Lakers currently have, in the minds of many, is a starting-level two-way wing or forward. Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler are locks for their starting lineup, and while Quentin Grimes could get a starting job as a shorter two-way wing, they don't have a high-level wing who is big enough to start at one forward position.
Their pursuit of Jonathan Kuminga this summer as an attempt to fill that hole is well-documented. Dan Woike, a Lakers beat writer for The Athletic, said on "The Zach Lowe Show" that the team also tried to pry loose Naz Reid from the Minnesota Timberwolves.
“The Lakers were very interested in finding an offensive-minded four this summer. They called on Naz Reid early on. They didn’t make what I would consider to be, like, a very serious offer for Naz Reid. But they called and checked in,” Woike said. “I think he was one of the players [where] they identified teams that had some salary pressure points. Like maybe there was a way you could get a guy for 75 cents [on the dollar]…That was a player that they looked at. I think, again, didn’t really put a real offer on the table for him but if Minnesota was in a sell-off, they were willing to say ‘Hey, maybe we can save you some money here.’”
The Timberwolves made big changes this summer, including jettisoning three-time All-Star power forward (and former Laker) Julius Randle and trading for guard LaMelo Ball. To acquire Ball, they had to give up Reid to the Charlotte Hornets.
A hulking 6-foot-9, 264-pound specimen, Reid isn't known much for his defense, but he isn't exactly a slouch on that end of the floor. Other than that, he has developed into a decent complementary scorer and 3-point threat, and he's also a capable rebounder.
Last season, he averaged 13.6 points on 45.6% field-goal shooting and 36.2% from 3-point range and 6.2 rebounds in 26.1 minutes a game. The Lakers got a close look at Reid during their first-round playoff series against the Timberwolves in 2025, when he scored 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting in a surprise 117-95 Minnesota win in Game 1.
This article originally appeared on Lakers Wire: The Lakers reportedly tried to trade for Naz Reid this summer