The Lakers need to trade for defensive help. But can they find it?

SALT LAKE CITY — As the Los Angeles Lakers walked off the court after one quarter on Thursday, the problem they needed to solve most was represented by the giant 41 next to the Utah Jazz logo. The 78 they allowed in the first half was the most they’d given up this season.

The Lakers’ needs, even before that clunker half, are obvious enough. They have a high-powered offense led by Luka Dončić, Austin Reaves and LeBron James generating open shots at the 3-point line and at the rim. Add in Deandre Ayton playing terrific basketball as a complementary center and Rui Hachimura making jumper after jumper regardless of his rhythm, and the needs are squarely on the defensive end of the court.

But in conversations with people inside the team’s locker room and on its coaching staff, there’s a recognition that the answers, both internal and external, aren’t all that obvious.

Earlier this week, JJ Redick said clearly what it takes for a role player to star alongside Dončić, Reaves and James: “Defend and shoot 3s.”

Turns out most good teams are looking for those players.

“There aren’t a lot of ’em,” said one Eastern Conference executive, who was granted anonymity so he could speak freely about the trade market. “And everyone wants one.”

The New Orleans Pelicans, according to team and league sources, have signaled to interested teams that they’re not entertaining Herbert Jones trades — at least not at any cost the Lakers can meet. L.A. could offer a single unprotected first-round pick and matching salary for Jones once he becomes trade-eligible in January. And for players like Jones, the asking price is usually a combination of good draft capital and young players.

It’s also important to note that Joe Dumars and the current Pelicans front office signed Jones to a contract extension this past offseason.

Sacramento’s Keon Ellis, another player coveted by teams looking for on-ball defensive help, could certainly be traded by the deadline as he enters free agency this summer. League sources believe the current price tag on Ellis is a protected first-round pick.

“He’s maybe the most divisive player in the league,” one league source said, pointing to the near-universal approval Ellis has from rival scouts and the lack of on-court opportunities with the second-straight coaching staff.

While the shooting part of the equation is there with Ellis (he’s a career 42 percent shooter from 3), the defensive impact is where the gamble exists. Some people think of Ellis as a defender more suited for creating turnovers than he is at actually slowing down opponents.

Others who aren’t as high on him have concerns about his size and ability to defend bigger guards.

Still, he seems like the kind of player the Lakers will consider this trade season — though they won’t be alone in their pursuit.

The Lakers had internal discussions about Andrew Wiggins earlier this summer and could revisit those if they decide to sacrifice cap space next summer to improve this season.

Another player worth monitoring will be LA Clippers forward Derrick Jones Jr. He’s already shown how valuable he can be next to Dončić when they played together on the Dallas Mavericks, and with the Clippers’ combination of losing and lack of draft assets, they’d have to listen to reasonable offers.

Some other players rival scouts and executives mentioned as potential fits included the Brooklyn Nets’ Terrance Mann and the Charlotte Hornets’ Josh Green. If the Chicago Bulls decided to move off of guard Ayo Dosunmu, he’d fit the bill too — though the Bulls have held him in high esteem in the past and would probably seek a haul.

The combination of the Lakers’ tradeable picks (one first and one second) and the league-wide lack of interest in the team’s recent draft picks puts the team in a bit of a bind.

There’s a recognition that finding more defensive help on the perimeter is important for a lot of different reasons. The Lakers would like to take those assignments off Reaves’ plate. They’d like to better balance some lineups. And of course, they’d like to give themselves better chances against speedy guards like Keyonte George, who lit up the Lakers for 34 points Thursday in L.A.’s 143-135 win.

How they actually get this done, though, is another question, one that doesn’t have an easy answer. Supply is low. Demand, likely, will be high.

And the Lakers only have so much they can give.