While the Lakers got Dinwiddie, the player LeBron wanted at the trade deadline

One of the biggest storylines the NBA media and the Lakers fans were following at this season's trade deadline was for LA to land a third star or at least a move that could help the team become a contending group for the championship.

Names like Zach LaVine, Dejounte Murray, and more were linked to LA, but in the end, the trade deadline happened and the front office stood pat without any movement at all, until the buyout market where GM Rob Pelinka was quick to act and landed point guard Spencer Dinwiddie, but far from names like LaVine and Murray that a new report suggests were already approved by the purple and gold superstar LeBron James.

LeBron James allegedly would have liked to see the Los Angeles Lakers trade for either Dejounte Murray or Zach LaVine prior to the trade deadline, which was on Feb. 8.

“James was also in support of the Lakers trading for Dejounte Murray or Zach LaVine — two Klutch Sports clients — in the weeks and months leading into the 2024 trade deadline, according to those sources,” Sam Amick, Anthony Slater and Jovan Buha wrote.

LeBron is now optimistic with the Lakers trending in the right direction

"The most important thing for me is definitely my health, where I'm at right now, where our team is leaning," James said. "We're trending in the right direction. Obviously, with our Laker team, it's been about health all year. Trying to do what's best for me for the betterment of the team." It was a significant endorsement by James for his team, which has won six of its past seven. It was only a couple of weeks ago when he was posting a cryptic hourglass emoji to social media in the middle of the night and saying he didn't know what he would do with his player option for the 2024-25 season -- which will be his 22nd in the league.