Lakers Trade News: Only Brandon Ingram is 'untouchable,' says Magic Johnson

Los Angeles Lakers president Magic Johnson has said that only second-year forward Brandon Ingram is "untouchable" with regards to potential trades this offseason. Ingram didn't have a steallar rookie seaosn but impressed Johnson and the coaching staff enought to secure a potential "future franchise player" standing.

"I would say probably the only player that we would say, hey, we would probably not move is Brandon Ingram. I think that we're excited about Brandon, his length, his size, his agility, his athleticism. And then when you think about, you know, he was a baby coming in, in his first year last season and we see that he really has a high ceiling and we're excited about what he can possibly turn into," Johnson told an L.A. radio show. (Listen: ESPNLA Mornings with Keyshawn, Jorge & LZ)

During his rookie season, Ingram averaged 9.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.1 assists from 79 games including 40 starts. Though he showed flashes of brilliance, the 6-foot-9 forward struggled to cope with the physicality of the NBA game. Many analysts feel Ingram is still 20 pounds away from becoming a starting calibre player in the highly-competitive league.

Ingram, the No. 2 pick in the upcoming 2017 NBA Draft and D’Angelo Russell are Johnson’s three most prized assets. According to several reports, Russell and Julius Randle could be expendable at some stage, especially if the Pacers agree to go ahead with a Paul George trade.

Magic wants Ingram to get stronger in the offseason

A day earlier, Johnson told another L.A. radio station (Listen: ESPNLA with Marcellus & Kelvin) that he wanted Ingram to get stronger during the offseason and improve on his ability to finish at the rim.

"We just want him to get a little stronger. Its not about being bigger, its about being stronger. So, I want him to lift weights a little more, to be strong than big. I was a skinny guy myself but I got stronger. I could tkae the contact while driving to the basket, I could take that bump. Right now, when he takes the hit, he's going out of bounds or he's going to the floor. This year, we want him to finish at the rim and get those and-ones."

Meanwhile, Lakers legend Kobe Bryant recently said that he was open to the idea of working out with Ingram during the 2017 offseason. When asked if he has scheduled any workouts with Ingram, Bryant said: “I’m always around. So if he wants to come (down) and work out, he has my cell obviously. I’m sure he’ll reach out at some point and come (down) to O.C. and we’ll get a workout in."

After February's All-Star break, Brandon Ingram averaged 13.2 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists from 32.1 minutes per game while shooting an impressive 47 percent from the field.