Reserve big men are always valuable commodity, particularly is they’re young, and Day’Ron Sharpe could be attractive to a number of teams.
When the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers put together their D’Angelo Russell for Dorian Finney-Smith deal, it took mere hours — like six — before the deal got done.
According to Clutch Points, Sean Marks and Rob Pelinka had time to discuss adding Day’Ron Sharpe and draft assets to the mix but in the end, they couldn’t come to an agreement and the deal was flushed out so that Shake Milton went west and three seconds and Maxwell Lewis went to Brooklyn.
Would the Lakers or other teams — Golden State Warriors reportedly also had interest in the 6’10” 23-year-old — call the Nets on Day-Day before Thursday’s deadline. With Cam Johnson’s availability uncertain because of the Nets high price tag, Sharpe may be the Nets player most likely to succeed elsewhere.
In his story Saturday, Brian Lewis quotes Sharpe as saying he’s not thinking — too much — about the possibility. “I don’t tend to think about it,” Sharpe told The Post. “I just go out there and play hard, you know? Whatever comes, comes with it, God willing. So it is what it is.”
At the moment, Sharpe’s trade value is high. After having missed the first six weeks of the season with a hamstring issue, the North Carolina product is playing his best basketball since the New Year, as Lewis wrote:
[I]n 12 games since — starting with 16-point, 13-rebound night Jan. 6 versus Indiana — Sharpe has averaged 8.9 points, 7.2 boards and 54.3 percent shooting.
“I feel a lot better since New Year’s started,” Sharpe told Lewis. “I feel like December had to get little kinks out with my body and stuff like that. But I feel a lot better now. I’m just trying to keep that, maintain that … So, staying focused.”
According to various reports, the Lakers brass like Shahe rpe, and Anthony Davis has begged Pelinka to find a backup so he can play his natural NBA position: the 4 instead of the 5. Speculation is that Davis and others on the team would prefer a veteran — Washington’s Jonas Valanciunas — over someone like Sharpe. According to Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times, the 32-year-old is “a known favorite in important pockets of the Lakers locker room.”
What might the Nets want in return for Sharpe? No one is saying publicly at least. He was a late first rounder — No. 29 in the 2021 Draft — but he is also a restricted free agent, meaning he could wind up as a rental. And he’s been troubled by injury.
The Lakers don’t have a lot of time if they want to make an impact. They’re currently the fifth seed in the tight West race.
- Day’Ron Sharpe stepping up his game as NBA trade deadline nears – Brian Lewis – New York Post