NBA Trade Rumors 2014: Pau Gasol Will Likely Stay in LA, Lakers Still Interested in Trading for Kevin Love

The Los Angeles Lakers are expected to become one of the most aggressive teams before the 2014 NBA trade deadline as they try to find takers for Pau Gasol.

However, Basketball Insiders believes that the All-Star center will likely stay in Los Angeles, pointing out that the Lakers will not get what they are asking for in exchange for Gasol.

Sources said that the Lakers appear unwilling to take back salary in any deal involving Gasol to keep their financial stability next summer and avoid paying big luxury taxes this season. The Lakers are also asking for future picks or young assets who could play a big role as they continue to rebuild in the coming years.

Getting what they are looking for in a deal involving Gasol is highly unlikely, considering the fact that the team who will acquire Gasol could lose him via free agency, unless the 33-year-old center signs an extension before July.

The Lakers had their best chance of getting the best value for Gasol earlier this month. The Lakers were in deep talks with the Cavaliers about a potential trade centered on Gasol and Andrew Bynum.

The deal would have saved the Lakers $20 million in salary and taxes, but the two sides failed to reach a common ground when it came to the future assets to be included in the deal.

"There are no more Bynum-like deals to be had before the February trade deadline, so at best, Kupchak is looking at accomplishing the second goal but not the first. That may not be enough to get him to pull the trigger on a deal. I think it's now fairly likely that Gasol remains a Laker for the remainder of the season," Basketball Insiders noted.

Aside from trading the 13-year veteran, sources said that the Lakers will push hard to acquire Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves either before the deadline or next summer. But NBA analysts believe that the Love-to-Lakers scenario appears unlikely because the Lakers have no attractive assets to entice Minnesota.

"If they were to acquire Kevin Love via trade, the obvious question is for whom? I really don't see a potential deal that entices the T-Wolves, and especially not in comparison to what they could get from other teams," Basketball Insiders noted.