The Portland Trail Blazers have strong interest in interviewing Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak for their GM vacancy, according to sources familiar with Portland’s thinking.

Kupchak is one of the Blazers’ top targets, sources told ESPN.com, in their quest to land an executive with experience running a franchise’s basketball operations.

It remains to be seen, however, whether the Lakers would be willing to grant Portland permission to speak to Kupchak, who has spent more than 25 years in L.A.’s front office. Kupchak took over for Jerry West as the club’s lead decision-maker in the basketball department in the summer of 2000 before gradually ceding that status to Jim Buss, who serves as the Lakers’ executive vice president of player personnel.

via Chris Broussard and Marc Stein of ESPN