The Los Angeles Lakers had many fans believing in them as a title contender when they started the season off 15-4. LeBron James was still getting adjusted to the Lakers' lineup, but Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic were putting up All-NBA caliber seasons, while role players like Deandre Ayton and Rui Hachimura were contributing at a high level.

However, it's been a tough holiday season for the Lakers, who dropped their third-straight game on Christmas Day, falling 119-96 to the Houston Rockets, who never gave LA a lead at any point. While most stats weren't too drastic in one direction or the other, the Rockets did dominate with a 48-25 rebounding differential.

To no surprise, it was a frustrated JJ Redick after the game, calling out players indirectly and wanting to change the brand of basketball they've been playing as of late. To close out his press conference, he gave a very stern and straight-to-the-point message.

"We've given everybody a chance," Redick said, referring to the team's rotation.

The Lakers did have their standard starting lineup on Thursday with LeBron, Doncic, Reaves, Hachimura, and Ayton, with Jake LaRavia, Marcus Smart, and Jarred Vanderbilt as the main bench players. Vanderbilt and LaRavia actually had positive plus-minuses, while the starting lineup was all -7 or worse.

The team could always look to insert Jaxson Hayes and Gabe Vincent back into the rotation once they are healthy, but it seems like a roster change might be what's coming.

Expecting the Lakers to go out and get a star would be irrational, since this team already has three players who can score 20 or 30 points on any given night, as this team truly needs players who can impact the game on the defensive end and attack the glass.

The problem is that the team lacks draft assets, as their 2031 first-round pick and their 2032 second-round pick are their only two picks they can trade for the time being. Therefore, they'll likely have to move off Dalton Knecht, one of their few young players on this roster who isn't much of a rotation player to begin with.

In terms of players the team could target, Phoenix's Nick Richards could make sense, given he'd probably have a smaller price, but the big swing move could be New Orleans' Herb Jones, who would definitely require both Knecht and the 2031 first to land.

The Lakers are always making trades, but it's important that they bring in players before the deadline that are complementary to their current group and address the issues at hand.