"Can be phenomenal next to Bron/AD": Lakers fans debate $45,000,000 champion guard's fit with LeBron James and Co. amid trade buzz

The Lakers are reportedly looking to make one or two key additions to their roster ahead of the Feb. 7 trade deadline to strengthen their championship aspirations. One player frequently linked to the Purple and Gold is Bruce Brown, who is viewed as a potential solution to one of their major weaknesses: perimeter defense.

Reports suggest that the Toronto Raptors are "highly motivated" to move Bruce Brown, who is currently on two-year, $45,000,000 contract, before the deadline and the Lakers are rumored to be a team worth watching in this pursuit.

Amid the swirling reports and speculation surrounding Bruce Brown, Lakers fans took to X (formerly Twitter) to debate the pros and cons of the one-time NBA champion potentially joining LeBron James and Co.

"Rui for Bruce Brown gives you a ton of long term flexibility and you get a guy who can defend and who can be phenomenal under to JJ and next to Bron/AD," a fan commented.

"Bruce doesn’t fit great with Austin. Christie and DFS fit great with Austin bron AD. Need some bench scoring. Hello rui," commented another fan.

"Solves what if u move on rui. U have 180 million in salary for next year. U need to move Gabe Vando and Milton for flexibility," a fan wrote.

"Good fit on paper, not a good fit when you consider we didn’t actually address anything. Now we’ve only Gabe to get us a decent big," another fan wrote.

"i dont get how this solves our team issues, we need creation, bruce yeah can create but not how we need... defense is an issue but its not our biggest issue, we cant score consistently anymore," a fan said.

"Bingo. A Reaves/Brown/Bron/Dfs/AD lineup moves me," said another fan.

The Lakers have already been active during the current trade window, moving D'Angelo Russell in a deal with the Brooklyn Nets to acquire Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton.

NBA analyst thinks Bruce Brown is Lakers' primary need

NBA analyst Jason Timpf recently emphasized the Lakers’ urgent need for a player like Bruce Brown. Timpf highlighted that the 6-foot-4 guard could be a valuable addition to the Purple and Gold, particularly with his defensive capabilities.

Currently, the Lakers rely on Max Christie as their primary defender against opposing teams’ top perimeter players. While the young guard has shown promise, his lack of experience has led to occasional mistakes.

Timpf argued that replacing Christie with Brown would provide significantly more value to LeBron James and the Lakers, particularly in critical defensive situations.

As for Brown, the one-time NBA champion is averaging 7.2 points and 3.4 rebounds per game this season while shooting 43.3% from the field, including 31.3% from beyond the arc.