The Mt. Lyell shrew, a mouse-like mammal that lives in the central Sierra Nevada, has never been photographed in the 100 years since it was discovered.
It took three industrious college students to figure out a way to finally capture the elusive critter’s image.
In October, Vishal Subramanyan, Prakrit Jain and Harper Forbes partnered with UC Berkeley’s Museum of Vertebrate Zoology to set more than 100 pitfall traps near the community of Lee Vining in the Eastern Sierra Nevada region, which is about 300 miles from San Francisco, according to CNN.
The team checked the traps about every two hours for three days and four nights because the shrews die if they don’t eat every few hours, making them difficult to capture alive and photograph.
“The hardest part of getting the photos was, one, they’re incredibly fast cause they’re always running around,” Subramanyan told CBS News.
The trio set up a white background on the bottom of the box that held the shrew and glass on the top so they could take the photos, according to the news outlet.
The Mt. Lyell shrew was known to reside in just a few locations in the central Sierra Nevada near Mt. Lyell but, in recent years, has spread to communities on the central and eastern slopes of the Sierra, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Apple Maps showing search results for ‘Gulf of America’
Apple Maps has seemingly taken a half step in addressing the United States Gulf of Mexico renaming, but it isn’t clear if this is the permanent solution or a placeholder.
When President Trump took office on January 20, 2025, one of the first executive orders he signed changed the names of multiple locations in and out of the United States. The most controversial was the change from Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America.
Politicians were quick to question Apple and Google on when the change would be reflected in their respective mapping apps. Google responded by stating Google Maps would be updated when the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) was updated — it still shows the Gulf of Mexico.
Apple has remained silent about the issue, but a change has been made, even if it is a small one. If users navigate to the Gulf of Mexico, it still shows the 400-year-old name plain as day.
However, if a user searches “Gulf of America,” the text over the Gulf changes to reflect the search result, but the information sheet shows data and photos about the Gulf of Mexico. This seems to be a working solution that could stick, but there isn’t any word from Apple if that is the plan.
Google will change the name for United States users to Gulf of America. Users outside of the United States will see both names with one in parentheses, while people in Mexico will see only Gulf of Mexico.
Apple Maps could still arrive at a similar solution. For now, the search term at least results in the expected location — something Google still doesn’t do.
It seems unlikely that this would be enough to satisfy some politicians, but it may be enough to stave off unwanted attention. It walks a fine line between showing the true name of the location and satisfying users that search for the term, and it may be enough.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) company man Kevin Holland is getting right back to action (and is dropping back down to Welterweight) as he takes on Gunnar Nelson at UFC London on March 22, 2025, inside The O2 Arena in London, England.
Twitter user Kevin K was the first to report the news, and Holland confirmed the fight on his Instagram by reposting a graphic of the matchup and writing, “Got rid of the ex, back at Welterweight/ lock in twin. Imma see you around.”
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Holland (26-13-1) is coming off a quick loss to Reinier de Ridder at UFC 311, where he was tapped in less than four minutes (watch highlights). The submission loss marked his second loss in a row and warranted a move back down to 170 lbs, where he found success by defeating Michael Chiesa and Santiago Ponzinibbio.
The move back to Welterweight was much needed as “Trailblazer” was getting outsized by big Middleweights such as De Ridder.
Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Nelson (19-5-1) is checking in for his one fight a year in London, as he’s done the past two years. In his last outing, “Gunni” tapped Bryan Barberena in the first round, and before that, he defeated Takashi Sato after a three-year layoff.
With the addition of Holland vs. Nelson, here is UFC London is shaping up
Leon Edwards vs. Jack Della Maddalena
Jan Blachowicz vs. Carlos Ulberg
Kevin Holland vs. Gunnar Nelson
Molly McCann vs. Istela Nunes
Mick Parkin vs. Marcin Tybura
Felipe Dos Santos vs. Lone’er Kavanagh
Alonzo Menifield vs. Oumar Sy
Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Andrey Pulyaev
Morgan Charriere vs. Nathaniel Wood
Nathan Fletcher vs. Caolan Loughran
Jai Herbert vs. Chris Padilla
Shauna Bannon vs. Puja Tomar
To checkout UFC’s upcoming schedule of events click here.
Older people whose cholesterol levels change over time may be 60% more likely to develop dementia than those whose cholesterol is stable, a study suggests.
Researchers tracked almost 10,000 people for an average of five years and gave them regular memory tests.
The typical difference between consecutive yearly cholesterol measurements was 91 mg/dL in the group who saw the biggest changes, compared with 22 mg/dL in the group with the smallest.
Those whose levels changed the most were 60% more likely to be diagnosed with dementia.
Study author Dr Zhen Zhou, of Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, said: “These results suggest that fluctuating cholesterol, measured annually, may be a new biomarker for identifying people at risk of dementia, providing more information than the actual cholesterol levels measured at a single time point.”
Participants in the study had an average age of 74 and were split into four groups depending on how much their cholesterol changed.
Some 509 were diagnosed with dementia, including 147 in the group with the biggest changes and 98 in the smallest change group.
When they looked at different types of cholesterol, the researchers found the link was only present for “bad” LDL cholesterol, not “good” HDL cholesterol or triglycerides.
Eating too many foods high in saturated and trans fats can increase LDL cholesterol. Fatty meats, dairy, and many processed foods are common sources.
Dr Zhou added: “Older people’s cholesterol should be monitored for changes over time to help identify people who may be at risk of cognitive impairment or dementia and could benefit from interventions.
“[This] could include lifestyle changes or making sure they start or keep taking statin to prevent fluctuations in their cholesterol and potentially reduce the risk of dementia.”
The findings were published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Real estate entrepreneur and long-time “Shark Tank” star Barbara Corcoran says she’s hired thousands of people during her career—including hiring (and firing) her own mother.
Now the 75-year-old investor and mentor is sharing her advice when it comes to what to look for when hiring. And if you think you need a strong resume to work with Corcoran, you’d be mistaken.
“I’ve hired thousands of people over the years and this is the No. 1 thing I’ve learned,” Corcoran says in a video posted to Instagram. “Always hire attitude over experience.”
“You have someone with the right attitude, you can teach them anything!” Corcoran continues. “Forget about the resume.”
“Think about their attitude and their willingness to learn,” she adds. “That’s what I’ve learned.”
Commenters mostly agreed with Corcoran’s thoughts, with one writing: “The best advice!!!! Agree 1000%; makes work and team environment so good too!”
Tesla said it was on track to roll out new, cheaper electric vehicle models in the first half of 2025 and would start testing an autonomous ride-hailing service in June, enthusing investors and overshadowing quarterly results that fell short of Wall Street expectations on Wednesday.
Tesla’s market value has soared with the election of President Trump, who is a close ally of CEO Elon Musk. But the electric car company posted a dip in deliveries last year, raising pressure for it to roll out lower-priced models as well as the autonomous vehicles and software that Musk says underpin its financial future.
Shares rose 5% as Tesla said it was cutting costs and working on the new vehicles.
Tesla’s market value has soared with the election of President Trump, who is a close ally of CEO Elon Musk. POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Musk told analysts and investors on a call that the company would start testing a fully autonomous paid car service in Austin, Texas, in several months.
“Teslas will be in the wild, with no one in them, in June, in Austin,” he said. Its driver assistance software, known as full self-driving, or FSD, will see unsupervised tests in other states, including California, this year as well, he said.
At the same time, Tesla is trying to make cars for less, and it said costs of goods sold had hit their lowest level ever in the fourth quarter, at less than $35,000, driven by lower raw material costs.
Tesla has a history of delivering products late and the company’s recommitment to delivering the new vehicles in the first half of the year was positive, said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at Tesla shareholder Globalt Investments, who was also encouraged by its reduced costs.
“They’ve been able to execute on the cost side and get that down. Their ability to do that in the fourth quarter definitely cushioned the blow,” he added.
Commercial-scale production of a robotaxi was planned for 2026 at its Texas factory, Tesla said. ZUMAPRESS.com / MEGA
Tesla last year abandoned plans to build a cheaper vehicle platform for the mass market, often called the Model 2, Reuters exclusively reported in April.
Instead, Musk said the company will use its current electric vehicle platform and production lines to produce more affordable models this year.
Musk said the company will use its current electric vehicle platform and production lines to produce more affordable models this year. AFP via Getty Images
“People are reading into the results that FSD and robotaxi are potentially on the cards in the next couple of years,” said Will Rhind, CEO of global ETF issuer GraniteShares. Musk, however, said that computers in some older Teslas would have to be upgraded for full self-driving.
Tesla has used cheap financing to pump up EV demand, a strategy analysts had predicted would erode automotive profit margins in future quarters as the company absorbs the impact of high interest rates.
Tesla’s fourth-quarter profit margin from vehicle sales, excluding regulatory credits, fell to 13.59% from 17.05% in the prior three-month period, according to Reuters calculations. Wall Street had expected the figure to be 16.2%, according to 23 analysts polled by Visible Alpha.
Revenue was $25.71 billion for the October-December quarter, compared with estimates of $27.27 billion, according to estimates compiled by LSEG.
Tesla has used cheap financing to pump up EV demand, a strategy analysts had predicted would erode automotive profit margins in future quarters. Christopher Sadowski
The EV pioneer’s annual deliveries dropped for the first time last year, due to higher borrowing costs and intense competition.
Rivals such as China’s BYD, as well as European manufacturers BMW and Volkswagen have launched new cheaper models to capture market share.
Tesla said it expected the vehicle business to return to growth this year, after a small drop in 2024. Musk had said late last year he expected vehicle sales to grow 20% to 30% in 2025, a forecast the company did not repeat in its results announcement.
Garrett Nelson, an analyst at CFRA Research, said prospects of self-driving were encouraging investors. A forecast for a 50% jump in deployments at the energy storage unit, which builds systems to make the electricity grid more resilient, was positive, too, he said.
“Many of us who’ve studied this issue, Trump’s directives seem reasonable,” cheers Lisa Selin Davis at UnHerd of the prez’s order to the Executive Branch to “not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called ‘transition’ of a child from one sex to another.”
She notes that actually “ending these practices may involve getting rid of section 1557 of the ObamaCare law.”
Other parts of the order focus on getting accurate information on the long-term effects of trans procedures and best practices for treating gender dysphoria.
Fact is, “we’ve long needed evidence-based guidelines instead of activist-based guidelines.”
But “as documents unsealed in lawsuits revealed,” the World Professional Association for Transgender Health “suppressed systematic evidence reviews because they didn’t support” trans-ing adolescents.
Conservative: Sensible Strings on Cali Relief
“Democrats are apoplectic” at President Trump’s suggestion that that federal wildfire relief for California “should come with conditions attached,” including the state changing its water, timber management and building standards, notes Mick Mulvaney at The Hill.
But the feds have had stipulations “like that for decades with hurricane and other flood-prone areas,” and “the Biden administration enforced” them.
“As a taxpayer (and someone who at the same time owns property in Florida), I say good for the Biden team. But how is what they did all that different from what some Republicans are talking about now?”
“If you start to ask your fellow taxpayers for free money to rebuild your home, maybe it’s not so unreasonable to impose conditions.”
In one, two former Politico reporters exposed “how decisions were made by editors to quash negative stories” about Hunter Biden’s laptop “which contained evidence of his shady business dealings and influence peddling.”
Instead, Politico ran an article calling The Post’s coverage of the scandal “disinformation.”
“The media also worked in lockstep to tamp down the possibility that COVID-19 could have originated in a lab,” a theory Trump postulated early on that is now accepted by America’s intelligence agencies.
“While the media’s instinct under Biden was to take him at his word, the opposite is true with Trump.”
With “such a clear double standard in coverage,” it’s hard to take journalists “seriously.”
Mideast desk: The IDF Tries To Save Abbas
Why is the IDF “carrying out antiterror missions in the West Bank despite the cease-fire in Gaza” asks Commentary’s Seth Mandel?
“To save Mahmoud Abbas’s Palestinian Authority from irrelevance and give it a fighting chance to once again govern both Palestinian territories.”
Will Abbas “ever be in a place where he is strong enough to hold up his end of a security bargain with Israel?”
Yes, during the Hamas war Israel drove home that “the ‘costs’ part of ‘resistance at all costs’ turned out to be quite high” for Palestinian terrorists. But the PA is “not great” at actually enforcing security, viz. its recent failures in Jenin, so the odds of it overseeing Gaza too “are looking a bit longer every day.”
From the right: Yes! to Missile Defense
“One benefit of President Trump’s return to power is that fresh thinking is sweeping through” government — most notably, his call for an Iron Dome-like missile-defense shield to make the nation “safer from missile and nuclear attacks,” cheers The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board.
Trump wants plans, within 60 days, for “new sensors for tracking missiles, including in space,” plus “the ‘development and deployment of proliferated space-based interceptors,’ and more.”
It’s could be a “great leap forward” for US defense. After all, global missile development has advanced and proliferated; it’s certainly “far more worrisome than climate change.”
Stronger missile defense enhances deterrence, since “an adversary contemplating a first strike can’t be confident its attack” gets through. “Kudos for Mr. Trump” for addressing this vulnerability.
It’s never been easier to generate passive income from the stock market. There are dozens of trading apps about nowadays, many of them offering a wide range of investing choices. Better still, some don’t charge any stock trading fees.
So, how much passive income could an investor starting out realistically expect to generate from a portfolio? Let’s find out.
A £10k portfolio
The first thing to point out is that a Stocks and Shares ISA account shields any dividends received from income tax. While the annual limit is £20,000, even investing half that amount is enough to build up sizeable passive income, as we’ll see.
Please note that tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each client and may be subject to change in future. The content in this article is provided for information purposes only. It is not intended to be, neither does it constitute, any form of tax advice. Readers are responsible for carrying out their own due diligence and for obtaining professional advice before making any investment decisions.
The average dividend yield from FTSE 100 stocks right now is around 3.5%. This means an investor could invest £10,000 in an index tracker than holds all 100 stocks and hope to achieve annual dividend income of £350.
An alternative route would be to build a bespoke portfolio of individual shares. This approach carries higher potential risk, as individual companies face unique challenges that require consideration, and their dividends are not guaranteed.
However, the risk might be worth it due to the potential for higher income. In other words, it is possible to earn a far higher rate of passive income by investing in individual dividend stocks offering far higher yields.
A stock to consider
I currently have four ultra-high-yield FTSE 100 stocks in my income portfolio. The table below lists their forecast dividend yields for 2025.
Forward yield
Legal & General
9.3%
British American Tobacco
7.8%
Aviva
7.3%
HSBC
6.3%
The average yield here is 7.7%, meaning an investor who puts £2,500 into each stock should receive £770 a year in dividends. That’s more than double the FTSE 100 average!
Of course, I’m simplifying things, as dividend payments rarely stay the same every year. Ideally, they should increase, but that isn’t certain. Aviva, for example, cut its payout in 2019 (though it’s paid a rising dividend every year since).
Global bank HSBC and insurers Legal & General and Aviva are all financial stocks. Therefore, the other may stick out like a sore thumb. Why do I own the tobacco stock? Well, when I first invested in it back in March, the stock was yielding above 10% on a forward-looking basis. That proved far too tempting, despite the genuine risk of falling cigarette sales.
Since then though, the share price has increased by 33%, lowering the yield in the process. Nevertheless, l think the stock still offers me solid value, trading at a low price-to-earnings multiple of around 7.9.
British American Tobacco is the world’s second-largest tobacco company by volume, operating in more than 180 countries. It owns cigarette labels Lucky Strike and Camel, as well as next-generation brands like Vuse (e-cigarettes), Glo (heated tobacco), and Velo (nicotine pouches). I don’t expect these nicotine products to disappear worldwide for some time.
Indeed, the Trump administration recently withdrew a plan to ban menthol cigarettes in the US. The company owns Newport, the leading menthol brand in America. Meanwhile, its Velo-branded nicotine pouch products are growing strongly.
Regular investing
To build up sizeable passive income, it’s going to take time. However, if someone invested £500 a month on top of a £10k sum, and reinvested dividends along the way, they’d end up with £319,077 after 20 years.
That portfolio would then be generating £24,568 in dividends each year, assuming the same 7.7% yield.
Rams cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon was unemployed when the NFL season began.
Cornerback Cobie Durant weathered injury and declining playing time after midseason.
Defensive lineman Neville Gallimore was inactive for three games, Desjuan Johnson six.
Tight end Davis Allen was targeted only 13 times.
All five players made big plays in the Rams’ NFC wild-card victory over the Minnesota Vikings that advanced coach Sean McVay’s team into a divisional-round game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
On Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, most of the focus will be on star players that abound for both teams. The Rams feature quarterback Matthew Stafford, receiver Puka Nacua and edge rusher Jared Verse, the Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, quarterback Jalen Hurts and receiver A.J. Brown.
For the Rams to win and advance to the NFC championship game their stars must shine, but the Rams almost certainly will need more big plays from important-but-less-celebrated contributors.
Last Monday, during a second-quarter series, Durant sacked Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold. Five plays later, he intercepted a pass.
“Just having that dawg mentality,” Durant said after the game.
Durant, a third-year pro, suffered a chest injury on Dec. 8 against the Buffalo Bills and was inactive the next game against the San Francisco 49ers. He did not play against the New York Jets and played only on special teams against the Arizona Cardinals before Witherspoon supplanted him in the starting lineup.
Durant did play 44 defensive snaps against the Vikings — and he made the most of them.
Rams cornerback Cobie Durant (14) celebrates his interception against the Vikings with Kamren Kinchens during their NFC wild-card playoff game.
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
“He handled the things he could control the right way,” McVay said of Durant’s journey. “His preparation and his approach. … There were a lot of things that, in terms of just preparation, where he was able to anticipate, not guess.”
In 2023, Witherspoon played for the Rams on a one-year, veteran-minimum contract, and he tied for the team lead with three interceptions. The Rams, however, did not re-sign Witherspoon, and he remained a free agent as the season began.
When cornerback Tre’Davious White struggled in a season-opening loss at Detroit, however, the Rams brought back Witherspoon.
The eighth-year pro did not play in Week 2 against the Cardinals or in Week 3 against the 49ers, then started two of the next eight games.
Following the Rams’ 37-20 defeat to the Eagles, Witherspoon did not play against the New Orleans Saints, and then played only six defensive snaps against the Bills.
He returned to the starting lineup against the 49ers and played exceptionally well down the stretch as the Rams finished 10-7.
“Just understanding the ebbs and flows of this league, I never get too high, never get too low,” Witherspoon said in late December. “And I think being away from the game, too, kind of gave me a certain level of peace that I haven’t had in just being out there and really enjoying playing.”
Witherspoon started against the Vikings and, in the series after Durant’s interception, he sacked Darnold and forced a fumble that Verse scooped and returned for a touchdown.
That play seemed to confirm something else Witherspoon said in December about why he considered it important to focus, engage and wish the best for teammates.
“In my opinion just the way the world works, it always comes back around,” he said, “so I just try to give love to those, give it to myself and then just wait for my opportunity.”
With defensive tackle Bobby Brown III suffering a shoulder injury against the Vikings, Gallimore and Johnson seized opportunity. Gallimore had a sack and shared another with edge rusher Byron Young. Johnson also had one of the Rams’ nine sacks, which tied an NFL postseason record.
“We got good chemistry together,” Johnson, a second-year pro, said of the defensive front. “We all play together, laugh together and have fun together. So it just felt like another day out there having fun.”
Allen got his star-turn opportunity against the Vikings after veteran tight end Tyler Higbee, who had five catches for 58 yards, left the game because of a chest injury.
Allen and fellow tight ends Colby Parkinson and Hunter Long thereafter combined for four catches. Allen’s 13-yard touchdown catch gave the Rams a 24-3 halftime lead.
“You look at how much better all three of those guys have gotten throughout this year,” McVay said of the tight ends. “They’re very good football players who are interchangeable and I think that’s a really valuable trait for us.”
Just one of many the Rams might require Sunday to win.
Etc.
The Rams did not practice Wednesday. On a projected injury report, Higbee (chest) was listed as limited. Witherspoon (thigh), Brown (shoulder) and left tackle Alaric Jackson (chest) were listed as projected non-participants.
PHILADELPHIA — The pressure, intended or not, is on.
Anthony Davis, in an interview taped with ESPN the day after the Lakers lost to the Clippers, said he thought the team should be active in acquiring a center. The context of the request was more than an ask for more bulk. It was in some ways a call to realign the roster with Davis playing more power forward, an end result that’s growing more unlikely as the Feb. 6 trade deadline approaches.
Davis suffered an abdominal strain Tuesday and is scheduled to be reevaluated in a week, muddying up the trade waters some. Still, let’s assume that the short timetable is a relatively good sign and that the injury isn’t feared to be serious.
In trying to engineer a trade, the Lakers have at their disposal their 2029 and 2031 first-round draft picks, a 1-4 protection on their 2027 first-round pick and a pair of second-round picks in this year’s draft.
Lakers forward Anthony Davis (3) goes up for a layup under pressure from Spurs center Victor Wembanyama on Jan. 13.
(Kevork Djansezian / Associated Press)
In conversations with executives inside and outside of the organization, it’s become clear that the costs for starting-caliber NBA centers are high — particularly ones good enough to force the Lakers into the kind of seismic change that moving Davis to power forward and LeBron James to small forward would cause.
Take Toronto’s Jakob Poeltl, who is under contract for $19.5 million next season (with a player option at the same number in 2026-27). Poeltl, 29, is a talented center who could be the kind of player the Lakers would target. However, Toronto is rumored to be seeking more than a first-round pick for Poeltl (and perhaps even two). It’s the kind of price the Lakers just wouldn’t pay for a player like him, likely requiring they trade Rui Hachimura and maybe two first-round picks for a center who, ultimately, plays the same position as Davis — only worse.
Other center options, like Chicago’s Nikola Vucevic and Washington’s Jonas Valanciunas, don’t offer the kind of rim protection the Lakers got from JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard during their 2020 NBA title run, the model of basketball Davis would like to replicate.
Valanciunas, a known favorite in important pockets of the Lakers’ locker room, does offer post scoring and could be a boost for their second unit, though playing through a back-to-the-basket center isn’t close to being coach JJ Redick’s stated style.
Atlanta’s Clint Capela is making $22.3 million, and while his contract is expiring, matching the money again would involve the Lakers trading at least one, if not two, pieces of their core for a center whom the Hawks just moved to their bench. The teams haven’t spoken about Capela, according to league executives not authorized to publicly discuss trade targets.
The Lakers have been actively exploring adding a big man, though it’s not being done recklessly, according to NBA executives. Concerns about cost, fitting Redick’s preferred style of play and the ripples from moving Davis — namely playing James major minutes at small forward — are being weighed.
Utah’s Walker Kessler, a perfect fit in terms of rim protection and salary (he’s making less than $3 million), is thought to be completely unavailable in any reasonable trade scenarios, including the Lakers using both first-round picks. Things could change, but costs generally drop only for players teams are willing to trade, not for players they are not.
Sixers center Joel Embiid (21) battles Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) for position during a game on Dec. 28 in Salt Lake City. Kessler is among the centers the Lakers could consider trying to acquire before the trade deadline.
(Rick Egan / Associated Press)
Another oft-mentioned target, Indiana’s Myles Turner, doesn’t seem like a realistic fit. There’s a real “I’ll believe it when I see it” vibe around the league in regard to his rumored trade availability, as the Pacers continue to play good basketball and their ownership wants to build off last season’s success. Turner, who has been with Indiana his entire career, also has the kind of intangible value to an organization that makes trading him even tougher despite real questions about what Indiana (or anyone) will be willing to pay him this summer as a free agent. The team dangled him in trade talks before and never pulled the trigger, so there’s skepticism among NBA sources that it would go through with it now while winning and making a charge up the standings.
Turner’s also not exactly a Nikola Jokic stopper, the Denver Nuggets most valuable player averaging 25.5 points in 15 career games against Indiana — his second-highest scoring average against any team. While scouts not authorized to speak publicly say Turner’s defensive impact has lagged, he’s shooting nearly 40% from three on more than five attempts per game.
The Lakers might’ve missed an opportunity with Charlotte for center Nick Richards, who ended up in Phoenix. The Suns sent three second-round picks and Josh Okogie for Richards and a low-value second-rounder. The Lakers, strapped for second-round picks, would’ve needed to turn a draft swap or the protection on the 2027 first-rounder into seconds to outbid the Suns.
If the costs are too high for starting centers, the Lakers could look to either upgrade from their backup center, Jaxson Hayes, or augment him by finding a player with greater bulk. Hayes, for his part, has played much better in the last two weeks after shaking off some rust from his extended absences because of ankle injuries. The Lakers adding Trey Jemison III on a two-way contract, an incredibly physical, high-motor player who could be the type the team adds to its bench.
A veteran who would add to the team culture, similar to Tristan Thompson when he signed on the way to the Western Conference finals two years ago, could have real value. Miami’s Kevin Love is one of the few players left in the league with championship ties to James and could fill the role Jared Dudley and Thompson did inside the locker room for James’ best Lakers teams.
Also, viewing Davis’ desires for a center as an absolute must seems like a mistake. The Lakers have known his preferences. They’ve found ways to play Davis and Hayes together for stretches — lineups that have looked good lately — while also finding early success with small-ball lineups with Jarred Vanderbilt and Dorian Finney-Smith playing together in the frontcourt.
A center also is not the Lakers’ lone need. According to players inside the locker room discouraged from publicly discussing trade targets, there’s a desire for more playmaking, a need that’s become clear since the team traded D’Angelo Russell.
Shake Milton, acquired with Finney-Smith in the Russell trade, has struggled off the bench, and the team could look for a more dynamic player to give their backup backcourt more pop alongside Gabe Vincent. The issue, like always, will come down to cost and availability. The Lakers likely would be reluctant to include significant assets for a player who, for instance, couldn’t play in closing lineups alongside Austin Reaves. And dynamic offensive players with size and defensive physicality, well, let’s just say those players are coveted by every team in the NBA and not readily available.
Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball, right, celebrates after guard Zach LaVine, left, hit a three-pointer on Monday.
(Melissa Tamez / Associated Press)
One player who would fit this bill, Chicago’s Lonzo Ball, comes with significant injury concerns but could be an option — though the trade math is sloppy without including both Vincent and Hachimura. And moving two players with years on their deal for an expiring contract likely would mean the Lakers would have to pay more for Ball than he’s worth on the open market.
Indiana guard Bennedict Mathurin is being monitored by nearly every team seen as a buyer at the deadline, according to one scouting executive. But because the Pacers are playing such good basketball, the team is expected to seek a player it values while trying to recoup the first-round pick it spent on Mathurin in a deal.
Washington’s Malcolm Brogdon has big-game experience and, at one point the Virginia Cavaliers alum had a big fan in fellow Atlantic Coast Conference star Redick. Brogdon is rumored to be available for a package of second-round picks.
Other backcourt options similarly come with caveats — either too small, too expensive, unavailable or not good enough. It remains unclear how comfortable the Lakers would be with adding a smaller, score-first guard like Utah’s Colin Sexton considering they traded one of those when they sent out Russell.
There also are the issues with the players the Lakers would need to trade to acquire a player making a significant salary. If Finney-Smith and Vanderbilt were at full health, you could argue the Lakers are maybe a little too crowded in the frontcourt with those two, James and Hachimura. But considering Finney-Smith and Vanderbilt are on minutes restrictions (and James’ age), depth at that position is seen as important. Similarly, during the last month, Vincent has established his value as a hard-nosed defender and an improving shot-maker. And without him, an already thin group of ballhandlers would need real improvement.
In an extended conversation with one Western Conference scout not authorized to publicly discuss his player evaluations, the scout referred to the exercise evaluating the Lakers’ trade options as “spinning our wheels” and noted we spent “30 minutes on the phone and haven’t come up with a good deal.”
None of this is to say the Lakers aren’t willing to trade one of their first-round draft picks or even both of them. But considering that they’re the only first-round picks the team has available, it wants to be prudent in how it uses them.
The desire inside the locker room for the Lakers to do something is real. The Finney-Smith addition, scouts and executives believe, has improved the floor for the Lakers by addressing toughness, defensive and spot-up shooting issues. But holes on the roster remain.
Lakers players are realistic about the number of needs, the lack of options and the expensive costs. Still, they know for the team to level up, front office creativity in a tight market will be crucial during the next week.
It all has the Lakers in a tight spot, the team needing to be aggressive and, perhaps, even overpay to give James the best possible shot at another deep playoff run. At the same time, they also have to be aware of the risks that kind of an investment poses to their post-James plans.
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