Lakers Talk Trade, but That Is All

The 6 p.m. National Basketball Assn. trading deadline came and went Thursday with no action by the Lakers, but a lot of furious and ultimately futile talks with the San Antonio Spurs.

The Lakers were reportedly trying for 32-year-old forward Mike Mitchell.

The Spurs were reportedly trying for 24-year-old forward Billy Thompson.

“It’s over,” said Spur General Manager Bob Bass. “We were working on something that we thought was equitable, and they just didn’t think it was. I thought we had a deal done last night, but it just didn’t work out.”

Mitchell, a proven scorer, had a 20.9 average for his first eight seasons in the league, but then went into a drug rehabilitation facility a year ago. This season, he missed 10 games after arthroscopic knee surgery, played behind Walter Berry and wasn’t expected to be among the eight players protected in the expansion draft.

Thompson, a Forum crowd favorite, has just returned to action after missing the season following his own knee surgery.

The Spurs reportedly tried to get him last season in the Mychal Thompson deal, but the Lakers reportedly persuaded them to take their No. 1 draft pick--which turned out to be Greg Anderson--instead.