Why Anthony Davis should be the Thunder's next trade target

With the 2023-24 NBA season behind us, the highly anticipated offseason is in full swing and trade rumors are already swirling about where some of the league's biggest and brightest stars could end up.

The Chicago Bulls and Oklahoma City Thunder have already made a one-for-one trade with veteran Alex Caruso and former first-round draft pick Josh Giddey after the 21-year-old's trade request. 

Colin Cowherd broke down why the Thunder should now shift their attention to the Los Angeles Lakers, revealing what his ultimate blockbuster trade proposal would be between the two organizations on Friday's edition of "The Herd."

"This roster … is not built for JJ Redick," he said of the Lakers' newly minted head coach. "What is an organization with a ton of draft capital [and] a bunch of good young players? The Lakers have nobody in their prime except [Anthony Davis], and it's a late prime. The Lakers need shooters [and] wing defenders. … The Lakers have a huge hole.

"Think about Oklahoma City [and] skinny Chet Holmgren. They don't have enough girth to face a Nikola Jokić or a Karl-Anthony Towns. … They're not good enough on the glass. … They need a big. They have a ton of draft picks. They also have a surplus of good young players, and you're not winning championships with a bunch of good young players. … To build a roster and give JJ Redick a chance, Anthony Davis with Chet Holmgren, [Luguentz Dort] and [Shai Gilgeous-Alexander] is immediately — along with Boston and Denver — a favorite to win the title. That is a great team."

"Meanwhile, what do the Lakers need?" Cowherd asked. "Jalen Williams averaged 19.0 [points] a game. His ceiling is probably closer to 25 to 26. He's 23 [years old and] he can defend. Cason Wallace, [a] tremendous young defender. Only 20 [years old]. High ceiling. … LeBron [James] will get him up and running quickly. Four first-round picks — try to get most of them … next draft. … The money doesn't work with this, you have to add a third team. … The Lakers might have to take a bad contract, probably with a big, but this roster is not JJ Redick's roster.

"[Anthony Davis] would fetch you what you haven't had [in] forever — young, ascending players in their prime. … To me, there is a trade partner [here]. … You can make a huge move in Oklahoma City … and give yourself a shot."

The Lakers are coming off a 47-35 (.573) season in which they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs and fired former head coach Darvin Ham after two seasons.

OKC is coming off a 57-25 (.695) campaign that got them all the way to the Western Conference semifinals, marking the first postseason appearance for head coach Mark Daigneault in his four seasons with the Thunder.