The Los Angeles Lakers staved off elimination with a Game 4 win against the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, but the reigning champions ended the series with a 108-106 victory on Monday.

Now, the Lakers enter the offseason shy of their ultimate goal for the fourth straight year. With LeBron James turning 40 in December and Anthony Davis likely nearing the end of his prime, their window for title contention may not be open much longer.

James has a $51.4 million player option for the 2024-25 campaign, and after Monday's loss, he declined to confirm that he'd return to the Lakers next year. But assuming he's back, L.A. has to do something to shake up its supporting cast.

The Lakers had to survive the play-in tournament just to make the playoffs. The following trades could help them avoid being in that mix for a third straight season.

Trae Young to the Rescue

The Deal: Trae Young for Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, a 2029 first-round pick, a 2030 first-round pick swap and a 2031 first-round pick

The rumors about Trae Young potentially joining the Lakers have been swirling for months. The Lakers' early playoff exit is going to fire those up again.

It's not hard to see why L.A. would be interested. Since Young's second season, the Atlanta Hawks have always had a good-to-great offense when him on the floor. He's one of the best pick-and-roll engines in the league, and the lob threat in actions with him and AD would be a nightmare to defend.

Presumably, that two-man game could be the foundation of something that would last beyond LeBron's retirement. And if there's a defensive anchor who might be able to mitigate some of what Young gives up on defense, it might be Davis.

The reasons for Atlanta to do something like this are equally obvious. The backcourt pairing of Young and Dejounte Murray hasn't worked. Both are better suited as clear No. 1 ball-handlers, and they've yet to find the right balance in a 1A-1B situation.

Trading either All-Star almost feels inevitable, and the argument for moving Young is that he'll almost certainly command the bigger return.

This deal would help the Hawks recoup some of what they lost in the Murray trade, while also adding a moneyball guard just shy of his prime to start alongside Murray in Reaves. Rui Hachimura would join a platoon of switchable, three-and-D forwards that includes Jalen Johnson and De'Andre Hunter. And Gabe Vincent could be a nice backup for the Murray-Reaves backcourt.

Dejounte Murray to the Less Dramatic Rescue

The Deal: Dejounte Murray for Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, Jalen Hood-Schifino, a 2029 first-round pick and a 2030 first-round pick swap

The Lakers could easily talk themselves into thinking they were better than a typical No. 7 seed. It took far too long for head coach Darvin Ham to resort to his most obvious starting five (D'Angelo Russell, Reaves, LeBron, Hachimura and Davis).

From Feb. 1 to the end of the season, the Lakers were 23-10 with the third-best offense in the league. They led the majority of the minutes in their first-round series with Denver. Two of the four losses ended with backbreaking mid-range jumpers by Nuggets guard Jamal Murray.

Unloading their best assets for a huge name like Young, which would in turn impact the team's depth and have it in danger of flirting with the dreaded second apron, might make less sense than bringing in a new coach and taking a shot on Young's former All-Star teammate.

This season, when Young was off the floor, Murray had a slightly positive plus-minus and averaged 25.2 points and 8.3 assists per 75 possessions. The potential fit with him, Davis and LeBron isn't quite as clean as it is with Young, but the defense would be better, and L.A. would likely have to give up less to get Murray.

If Russell picks up his player option, this trade framework could also allow the Lakers to pair him with another first-rounder in a separate deal.

For the Hawks, this would be another bet on Young, who's still only 25 years old and led Atlanta to a conference finals prior to the all-in trade for Murray. It'd give them more depth at both forward and guard, some potential in Jalen Hood-Schifino and draft capital to offset what they gave up for Murray.

More Firepower from Zach LaVine

The Deal: Zach LaVine for D'Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, Jalen Hood-Schifino and a 2030 first-round pick swap

Despite averaging 24.7 points and making two All-Star teams over the last six seasons, Zach LaVine is currently a distressed trade asset. A knee injury limited him to only 25 games in 2023-24, and he still has three years and $138 million left on his contract (including an $49.0 million player option in 2026-27).

Those factors might even lead to the Chicago Bulls having to attach additional assets to his contract to unload him. So, perhaps the Lakers should approach any potential negotiations on this front less aggressively than for either of the Hakws guards.

LaVine for Russell's expiring contract (if he can be talked into picking up his option and going to Chicago), a solid three-and-D forward like Hachimura and a upside play with Hood-Schifino is a pretty good deal. But if the Bulls balk at that, a far-in-the-future pick swap isn't quite as risky as a straight-up first-round pick.

If LaVine can get back to even 85-90 percent of what he was during his All-Star campaigns, lineups with him, Reaves, LeBron and AD could be nightmarish on offense. Meanwhile, this deal would mostly be about getting out from under LaVine's contract for the Bulls.

Russell would be a stopgap guard who might even come off the bench behind Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu. He could also be flipped in another deal between this offseason and the trade deadline. Hachimura would add depth and versatility to the frontcourt. And Hood-Schifino would juice the upside of a backcourt that already includes White and Dosunmu.

LeBron James and Stephen Curry Unite

The Deal: LeBron James and Jarred Vanderbilt for Chris Paul, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, a 2026 first-round pick, a 2028 first-round pick and a 2029 first-round pick swap

Alright, let's get a little weirder here.

The other side of the "Lakers can talk themselves into thinking they're close to a title" is the fact that they've been in the play-in tournament in each of the last two seasons, missed the playoffs altogether in 2022 and are eight months shy of LeBron's 40th birthday.

Trading him seems almost inconceivable, but there's at least a reasonable argument for L.A. to simply start over.

And this past February, the Golden State Warriors reportedly reached out to the Lakers about acquiring James.

They could reopen that line of communication this summer with Chris Paul's expiring contract (hello cap flexibility), Andrew Wiggins' deal that pays him about half of what LeBron makes, a high-upside forward in Jonathan Kuminga and draft capital.

L.A. might insist on also getting Brandin Podziemski, but that starts to feel a little risky for the Warriors, whose already old roster would suddenly feature a near-40-year-old LeBron.

The foundation of this deal at least makes sense.

The Lakers could tip off a rebuild with more draft assets (and ones that could end up being really good, given the ages of Stephen Curry and LeBron) and at least one young player with star potential.

Golden State, meanwhile, would have the two faces of this generation in the same lineup. Both are past their primes, but they played at an All-NBA level this season, and it's not hard to see how their games would mesh, especially if LeBron keeps shooting like he did in 2023-24 (when he made 41.0 percent of his threes).

That duo could have a two-man game like Curry and Draymond Green's turned up to 11.

And though their potential contention window wouldn't be open long, if both played like they did in 2023-24, it'd be open wide.