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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreFor a franchise that won the championship a year and a half ago by being the physically bigger and more athletically dominant team, the Lakers seem to have forgotten how much size matters, even in today’s positionless NBA.
The Lakers’ lack of front court size other than LeBron James and Anthony Davis will be at the heart of their plans to rebuild their roster this offseason. The question is whether to acquire more size via a small forward or center? While pursuing a small forward like Jerami Grant makes sense, trading for a modern center who can protect the rim and stretch the floor like Christian Wood or Myles Turner could be a smarter strategic move for the Lakers.
Trading for Christian Wood or Myles Turner has distinct advantages over trading for Jerami Grant. Most importantly, it lets Anthony Davis and LeBron James play their preferred power forward and small forward positions. Adding a center like Christian Wood or Myles Turner would also give the Lakers the versatility to play play big or small and empower them to have a leading shot blocker protecting the rim for all 48 minutes of every game.
While many expect the Lakers to pursue Jerami Grant, the Lakers should surprise everybody and zig while the rest of the league zags. Dominating size was a big part of the formula the Lakers used to win their 18th title. They need the intimidating rim protection of their title run in the bubble but updated with a modern center who can not only block shots but also create desperately needed spacing by pulling opposing big men out of the paint.
The Los Angeles’ Lakers objective this summer should be to trade Russell Westbrook and rebuild the team’s starting lineup with elite 3-point shooters and defenders to complement superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Ideally, the Lakers need to find a trading partner to take Russell Westbrook, Talen Horton-Tucker, Kendrick Nunn, and their 2027 and 2029 first round picks in return for a new starting point guard, shooting guard, and center.
Here are two proposed mega trades to give the Lakers three new starters. They acquire Myles Turner, Malcolm Brogdon, and Buddy Hield from the Pacers or Christian Wood, John Wall, and Eric Gordon from the Rockets.
Pacers’ Trade for Myles Turner, Malcolm Brogdon, and Buddy Hield
The Lakers logical trade partner this summer should be the Pacers, who are in the middle of a total rebuild, having already traded Sabonis, LeVert, Holiday, Lamb, and Craig with Turner, Brogdon, and Hield still on the block.
The core of the Lakers and Pacers trade is Russell Westbrook’s $47 million expiring contract in a salary dump for the $40.5 million over two years owed Buddy Hield and the $44.3 million over two years owed Malcolm Brogdon. The Lakers would move to expand the trade by adding Talen Horton-Tucker, Kendrick Nunn, and their 2027 and 2029 first round draft picks to the deal to convince the Pacers to include Myles Turner’s $18 million expiring contract.
For the Lakers, the trade transforms their starting lineup at both ends with Malcolm Brogdon and Buddy Hield becoming the starting guards and Myles Turner the starting center playing with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Suddenly, the perimeter defense, rim protection, playmaking, rebounding, points in the paint, 3-point shooting, ball security, and floor spacing for the Lakers starting lineup dramatically improves over this year’s starting lineup.
The beauty of the Pacers trade is the Lakers total payroll remains about the same as this season as will the team’s luxury tax bill. The team also gets younger with the 26-year old Turner and 29-year old Brogdon and Hield. Winning with LeBron requires surrounding the King with high volume, high percentage 3-point shooters and adding Turner, Hield, and Brogdon should move the Lakers’ 3-point attempts and percentage to top five.
While Myles Turner, Malcolm Brogdon, and Buddy Hield are not superstars, they’re the three legitimate championship quality starters the Lakers need to complement superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis and win #18.
Rockets’ Trade for Christian Wood, John Wall, and Eric Gordon
The Lakers other top trade partner this summer should be the Rockets, who are undergoing a major rebuild and will be looking to move veterans like Eric Gordon, John Wall, and Christian Wood for young prospects and draft picks.
The core of the Lakers and Rockets trade is a swap of Russell Westbrook’s $47 million expiring contract for John Wall’s $47 million expiring contract as the Lakers and Westbrook mutually agreed to part ways the end of year. The Lakers would expand the trade by adding Talen Horton-Tucker, Kendrick Nunn, Stanley Johnson, and their 2027 and 2029 first round picks to get the Pacers to include Christian Wood and Eric Gordon in the deal.
For the Lakers, the trade transforms their starting lineup at both ends with John Wall and Eric Gordon becoming the starting guards and Christian Wood the starting center playing with superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Suddenly, the Lakers become a more versatile and dangerous team that can play five-out small-ball-on-steroids with three of the best small ball centers in the league in Anthony Davis, Christian Wood, and LeBron James.
The one negative to this trade is that the Lakers total salaries increase by $16.3 million, which could result in extra luxury taxes unless the Lakers move Wall, which they will have the opportunity to do before the deadline. There’s a good chance they could use Wall’s $47 million expiring contract to pick up some bench depth much like the Clippers were able to do this year at the deadline with their great midseason trade for Powell and Covington.
While Christian Wood, Eric Gordon, and John Wall are not superstars, they’re the three legitimate championship quality starters the Lakers need to complement superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis and win #18.
LAKERS POST-TRADE DEPTH CHART 
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6 Comments-
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It’s not serious and he should be fully recovered by start of next season.
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I’d be perfectly fine with an elite defender at the 5, don’t see the need for a stretch five unless one becomes available for the right deal. With the theory being AD and LBJ will be relatively healthy after another long summer I think we need to truly re-focus our identity back to defense. I’d love Turner but don’t see Indy making that deal as they are never in “full rebuild mode” and ownership has said as much. Maybe THT and Nunn for Myles rather than shoot for the Moon with a mega trade. At any rate, give me a young athletic center who can finish at the rim and in the paint if it’s doable rather than hold out for a unicorn type multi-tool player. Honestly, Turner isn’t even that great at shooting the 3 and is hurt a lot, give me a dude who can go 82.
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While both Turner and Wood are 26-years old, Turner is by far the more proven product and a bigger, better rim protector and low post defender due to his 6′ 11″ and 250 lbs. Turner is a career 34.9% 3-point shooter who’s averaging 4.4 3PA per game.
Besides giving you some spacing, Turner is a better low post scorer and lob and pick and roll finisher than Howard at this point. He truly has the size to defend Embiid and Jokic. Unlike Howard and McGee and traditional low post centers, his ability to stretch the floor makes it hard to play him off the floor.
And the Lakers can then switch up on teams and go small with AD or LeBron at the five as a change of pace or better matchup. I love the versatility that Turner would give us.
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Wood is more of a poor man’s Anthony Davis. He’s less experienced than Turner but smaller and lighter at 6′ 9″ and 214 lbs, is a much more aggressive rim attacker and dunker, and a better 3-point shooter: 38.1% on 4.9 3PA per game.
Wood could play stretch four or five whereas Turner is a five. Wood probably has poor man’s AD potential to defend smaller players with his speed, athleticism, and hops.
Only questions about Wood are his motor and character as he can be moody and is still very inexperienced. On the other hand, the Lakers could probably trade for him more easily than Turner and his upside could be greater: a true version of Anthony Davis lite.
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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreIn every great sports championship, there is a moment when the winning team figures out what they need to do and how they need to play to win. Last night might have been that night for Russell Westbrook and the Lakers.
After an accursed season where injuries undermined promise and the ball never seemed to bounce the Lakers’ way, last night’s inspired overtime win over the Toronto Raptors due to Russell Westbrook’s heroics raises hopes. Russ’ clutch steal with the Lakers down three and ten seconds left in regulation and dagger three to tie and send the game into overtime may have changed everything for him and the Lakers going forward.
It’s easy to ignore last night’s game as just an outlier but there are legitimate reasons to be optimistic that the Los Angeles Lakers and Russell Westbrook may finally be figuring out how to integrate their games and make it work. There were strong signs LeBron and Russ were figuring out both how to share ball handling duties and make an impact off the ball. The player and ball movement last night was outstanding as the playmaking with 33 assists.
There were also signs the coaching staff may finally be getting it together. Frank Vogel finally put 6′ 8″ Wenyen Gabriel in the starting lineup alongside 6′ 10″ Dwight Howard so the Lakers’ size wouldn’t handicap them all night. Small ball is fine when it’s on steroids with LeBron and AD but micro ball with LeBron and four guards just leaves the team undersized and undermanned. It’s not only dispiriting but also a recipe to lose games.
What are the odds last night’s moment could be a momentum changing moment for the Lakers? That Russell Westbrook was the protagonist and catalyst in last night’s win makes the moment pregnant with possibility. Russ figured out last night how to fit his game with LeBron and the rest of the team. While he had his usual dumb turnovers and missed layups, Russ played like Russ, attacking the paint, making right pass.
There was jerkiness and unpredictability about how the Lakers played on offense and defense last night. We made unexpected plays helping on defense and sharing the ball on offense without relying on micro ball. The key was more ball and player movement and fewer isolation plays. While we lost in transition , our half court offense was best we’ve seen in a while as we posted 33 assists, our second best total as a team this season.
Maybe this is a mirage but there’s a chance last night could have been the moment that changed the season for Westbrook and the Lakers. We’ll find out tonight if last night was a false dawn or a genuine awakening.
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Adding Wenyen Gabriel to the starting lineup allowed the Lakers to play their small ball style game but with size to not be handicapped in the paint. Did a good job holding their own on the boards and in the paint.
Will this be a turning point for the Lakers. It could be. If we’re going to make any noise in the Play-In or Playoffs, we’re going to need to start learning how to win. Last night was a first good step and the fact that Russ won an unwinnable game is a perfect place to start our comeback.
Tonight, the Lakers won’t let us down. Not this time.
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What we have been lacking in the past games is someone who is going to take charge and be the leadoff person to start games. That’s what we had in Gabriel last night. His energy was contagious and the team woke up.
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No. This is a season of poor choices, missed opportunities and bad luck. There will be no turning point, corner rounded or switch flipped.
This moment is why I don’t laugh off preseason or chuckle away early season losses. Those were the times we were supposed to be forming good habits and instead the team and much of the fan base went ‘La La’ on the process that builds a successful season. Here’s hoping everyone gets the message that preseason matters, every game counts and the habits you establish in the early part of the season are the ones that define you later on.
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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreThe reality is this season is toast and the Lakers brain trust of LeBron James, Rich Paul, Jeanie Buss, and Rob Pelinka that’s responsible for getting us into this dismal situation will be the same group charged with finding a solution.
There’s no question there’s enough blame to share with players, coaches, and front office for the situation the Lakers find themselves in even before trying to factor in the wave of injuries that have derailed the Lakers’ season. LeBron’s to blame for pushing the Westbrook trade; Rich Paul for vetoing trading THT for Lowry; Jeanie Buss for not paying the luxury taxes to keep Caruso; Rob Pelinka for being unwilling to take back long contracts.
As we wait for the season’s final gasps, let’s focus on what LeBron James, Rich Paul, Jeanie Buss, and Rob Pelinka can each do to fix the Lakers’ issues. Here is what each of them can specifically do this summer to fix the Lakers:
1. LeBron James Can Sign His Contract Extension
The Lakers top priority this summer is to lock up LeBron for two more years. While he won’t be eligible to sign an extension until August 4th, James needs to verbally commit to the Lakers when the season ends.
The roster moves the Lakers should make this summer if LeBron agrees to sign an extension could be dramatically different than if James declines to sign an extension and threatens to become a free agent the next season. Ironically, the Lakers could decide to trade James this summer were he unwilling to sign an extension so there’s no way Rob Pelinka can wait until August 4th or later to find out if LeBron was going to commit to the Lakers.
The single most important thing LeBron James can do to help fix the Lakers this summer is to commit early to signing a new 2-year extension to remain with the Lakers when he becomes eligible to do so on August 4th.
2. Rich Paul Can Help Lakers Rebuild Their Roster
Rich Paul and Klutch Sports need to work hard this offseason to heal any breaches in their alliance with the Lakers and help Rob Pelinka rebuild the roster with players who better complement Klutch clients LeBron and AD.
Rich can do that in several ways. First, the Lakers are going to be needing a point guard to replace Russell Westbrook. Klutch should work with Houston to get a buyout for John Wall so he could sign for the minimum with L.A. Second, the Lakers two biggest trading chips besides Russell Westbrook are Klutch clients Talen Horton-Tucker and Kendrick Nunn. Paul should have a good idea of which teams showed interest in THT and Nunn in the past.
The Lakers need to move guards THT and Nunn for bigger forwards and/or a center so their small ball lineups would work offensively and defensively. Rich Paul needs to help the Lakers find the right trading partners.
3. Jeanie Buss Can Loosen the Lakers’ Purse Strings
There’s been criticism of Jeanie Buss and Lakers’ ownership for not being willing to spend whatever it takes to win championships, especially when it comes to taking on long-term contracts or paying mega luxury taxes.
While Dr. Buss never incurred huge luxury taxes, he always understood that you have to spend money to make money in the entertainment business. Jeanie needs to understand the rules for winning have changed. Unlike during Jerry Buss’ tenure, NBA teams today are willing to incur $100 to 200 million in luxury taxes to win a championship, figures that no teams were ever willing to pay during Dr. Buss’ tenure as the Lakers owner.
Jeanie Buss needs to step up to the plate and guarantee LeBron James that she will be willing to accept reasonable long term contracts and mega luxury taxes needed to build a championship caliber roster in today’s NBA.
4. Rob Pelinka Can Make the Right Moves This Summer
As the head of basketball operations for the Lakers, Pelinka will get an opportunity this summer to reverse the Russell Westbrook trade and build a true championship caliber roster around LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
The challenge facing Pelinka will be less daunting than at the recent trade deadline where he opted to do nothing. This summer, Rob will not only have Russ’ $47 million expiring contract but also two first round draft picks. Lakers need to trade Russ’ expiring contract for multiple players who would upgrade the roster or could be flipped for other players. They’re better off waiving and stretching Russ than giving up draft picks to move him.
In the end, Rob Pelinka needs to turn Westbrook, Horton-Tucker, Nunn, Johnson, and our 2027 and 2029 first round picks into three championship quality new starters to complement LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
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What LeBron, Rich, Jeanie, and Rob Can Do to Fix Lakers This Summer!
1. LeBron Can Sign His Contract Extension
2. Rich Can Help Lakers Rebuild Their Roster
3. Jeanie Can Loosen the Lakers’ Purse Strings
4. Rob Can Make the Right Moves This Summerhttps://t.co/qJJZyljkxg— LakerTom (@LakerTom) March 17, 2022
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Lakers Front office Rules for This Summer:
1. Don’t waste draft picks to move Russ. Only trades where we give up a pick would have to give us two starters, like Brogdon and Hield from the Pacers or Rose and Randle from the Knicks.
2. Buyout, waive, and stretch Russ if we cannot find a trade for two starters. Then use the two picks to pursue Jerami Grant, whom the Pistons say they will trade for two first round picks.
2. While we need a point guard to replace Russ, the Lakers need a stretch big, either a center or forward, who can protect the rim and shoot the three. Ideally, a stretch five center like Myles Turner or Christian Wood would be perfect.
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OMG you keep harping on maintaining the unholy union with Lebron and Klutch to further empty the cupboard and be mired in mediocrity for a few more years. With a LeBron that’s come back down to the pack, who cares if you squeeze a all-star-in-name-only campaign out of him or two? Paying him upward of 50mil to get a mid-tier all-stars worth of performance to stay barely relevant doesn’t seem like a move anybody should be racing to make. And for the love of heaven, you are hereby banned from mentioning the names Wood or Turner ever again. I don’t know what’s got into about a guy over 6’10 who was for a brief moment in time a half-decent 3 point shooter, but as history’s shown us, every time they come to LA, they regress to their usual, mediocre selves. At least you’ve stopped talking about Bertans.
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LOL, Stan. All signs point to the Lakers still valuing LeBron James and the relationship with Klutch Sports. LeBron will let the Lakers know he is going to sign the extension so they can feel free going out and trading for players to surround him. Doubt any different outcome.
Personally, giving Bron the extension is the smart move for the Lakers. He may be just a top 10 player now but, with a healthy AD and three legitimate NBA starters, LeBron could win two more championships before he’s done. You don’t trade him. Especially since he’s still an elite player at 37. You give LeBron James the same respect you gave Kobe Bryant.
If you want to live in a fantasy universe where the Lakers are going to trade LeBron James with gas left in the tank, good luck, my friend. Going to be a long tough next two years.
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What signs are you talking about? The one where they didn’t take yet another useless Klutch client in Wall and give up the only asset they had left? The signs point to the Lakers quickly have gotten tired of Klutch’s and their real owner, Lebron’s M.O. Now that he’s unable to elevate a roster, THERE IS NO POINT in paying him what you have to pay him and having to constantly placate him. Man, it’s like you’ve gotten so old now you’ve forgotten what it was like when your body started to break down like his has.
The time has come where the league continue to be deferential to Lebron when secretly they know times up. The opponents certainly show him no respect on the court. Even the mediocre TWolves just laughed, paid him no mind, and stomped him on the court. I don’t even think you could find a decent trade for him if you wanted to, and teams are secretly hoping they don’t get a call from the dreaded Rich Paul gauging interest in his damaged goods, former superstar. That’s a dude who consistently overplayed his hand, and when his guy was the best in the league, he could get away with bs like the Simmons saga in Philly. Now, these owners will take great delight in sticking it to Klutch the same way players are laughing at Bron on the court.
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Problem is that we’re counting on the same folks who screwed this up in the 1st place to suddenly get smart and fix it. I’m not confident.
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Yep! Most likely result could be an overreaction. Rob has to take charge and not let all of the different influencers confuse him from doing what is needed, including LeGM and AD, Kurt and Linda Rambus. The Lakers need to get bigger and need three new starters. And they need to do that while dumping Russ. Tall order for Rob Pelinka.
Here’s what I’m hoping will happen. Rob understands he should have NOT made the Westbrook trade if for no other reason than everybody underestimated how bad it could get for the Lakers once you factored in the injuries. The Lakers and Russ marriage is headed for divorce this summer, even if LA has to waive and stretch Russ to get rid of him.
This time Rob will do his job and listen to all of the other stakeholders, the superstars, the coaches who are left, the ball boys, Lakerholics.com, etc. but he will then make the decision he’s paid to make, show he learned from last summer. This time he follows his gut instinct and remembers somebody has to be the one to make the call. So do your job, silence the noise, and make sure the Lakers make smart moves, Rob.
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I’ve never been sold on Rob. If he can guide himself out of this corner he’s painted himself into then I’ll be shocked. I’m guessing he’ll panic and make bad decisions trying to fit Lebron’s “championship window” that may already be closed. Could easily cripple us for years to come.
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The Westbrook trade has left Rob and the Lakers in a difficult position. He needs to pull off a trade for Russ’ expiring contract like the Clippers did with Bledsoe’s expiring contract to get Powell and Covington. We need two starters for Russ like Brogdon and Hield if we’re going to give up a pick. Otherwise, W&S him for 3-years. Don’t waste picks on moving him. Only use them when you get starters back.
If you W&S Russ, you can use both picks to go after Jerami Grant. There are usual expiring contract deals Rob can get done that at worst break up Russ $47M into two or three smaller more moveable contracts. If we can get a Grant or a Turner or Wood, that would go a long way to solving our small ball size issues.
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There are just so many overall problems and holes to be filled (both on & off the court) it’s hard to see it getting done in one summer. You’re gonna flip half the roster again, 3 new starters, bring in a new coach & system, and then hope & pray all the pieces gel and LeBron & AD stay healthy. All while racing the clock against Lebron’s inevitable retirement. That’s a helluva needle to thread. Not convinced Rob is the tailor to do it…which is why I’m beginning to lean towards tearing it down sooner rather than later.
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LakerTom wrote a new post
Read MoreThe Los Angeles Lakers get a rare second chance this summer to surround superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis with three championship quality starters who possess critically needed 3-point shooting and defense.
Professional sports teams rarely get a second chance to do something right they did wrong last time, but that’s exactly where the Los Angeles Lakers will find themselves this summer as they get a mulligan of sorts for last summer. Committed to ending the Westbrook experiment, the Lakers decided at the deadline to hold onto all of their trading chips until summer to improve their chances of being able to swap Russ and pieces for three new starters.
Finding a trading partner for Westbrook should be easier this summer than at the deadline because Russ’ $47 salary suddenly becomes a huge expiring contract coveted by teams looking to clear cap space or dump contracts. Besides Russell Westbrook (Player Option), Talen Horton-Tucker, Kendrick Nunn (Player Option), Austin Reaves, and Stanley Johnson (Team Option), the Lakers will also be able to offer their 2027 and 2029 first round picks.
Whether the Lakers will be able to do this summer what they didn’t do last summer could well determine the future of the franchise. If the Lakers are forced to buyout, waive, and stretch Russ, it could cripple their cap space. On the other hand, if Pelinka can find a team desperate to move good players on long-term deals for expiring contracts, the Laker could have a legitimate chance to correct the mistake they made in trading for Russ.
The key to the Lakers being able to do right this summer what they should have done last summer will be their willingness as a franchise to accept back players with multiple year contracts to move Westbrook’s $47 million contract. That’s the only way the Lakers are going to turn Russ’ expiring contract into an asset and trading chip and not a liability that would cost them valuable draft capital or waive-and-stretch dead cap space to move.
Here are three possible scenarios where the Lakers get a second chance to do what they should have done last summer and surround LeBron and AD with with championship starting players who can shoot, pass, and defend.
1. Trade for Christian Wood, Buddy Hield, and Malcolm Brogdon
Christian Wood, 26-years old, 6′ 9″, 214 lbs
Averaging 17.9/10.1/2.2 in 31.2 mpg
Shooting 49.4%/38.1%/60.8% on 4.9 3PABuddy Hield, 29-years old 6′ 4″, 220 lbs
Averaging 15.2/4.3/2.5 in 39.2 mpg
Shooting 47.5%/36.8%/91.7% on 8.6 3PAMalcolm Brogdon, 29-years old, 6′ 5″, 229 lbs
Averaging 19.1/5.3/6.0 in 33.6 mpg
Shooting 44.6%/37.7%/88.1% on 5.2 3PA
The Lakers’ best option to redo what they did wrong last offseason is to trade Russ, THT, Nunn, and their 2027 and 2029 first round picks for three new starters in Christian Wood, Buddy Hield, and Malcolm Brogdon.
By trading Russ’ $47 million expiring contract and their 2027 first round pick to the Indiana Pacers in a salary dump for Buddy Hield and Malcolm Brogdon, the Lakers can miraculously reverse last summer’s big trade. They not only get out of Russ’ contract but get the perfect two-way point guard in Malcolm Brogdon and volume 3-point sharpshooter in Buddy Hield, the shooting guard the Lakers almost traded for instead of Russ last summer.
The best player in these trades and difference-maker in this Lakers’ rebuilding scenario is Christian Wood, whom the Lakers get from the Rockets in exchange for Horton-Tucker, Nunn, and their 2029 first round pick. Christian not only gives the Lakers the athletic big they were missing to make their small-ball-on-steroids lineups work but also a second elite shot-blocking stretch center to share the four and five with Anthony Davis.
A starting lineup for next season of Malcolm Brogdon, Buddy Hield, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Christian Wood would be the dramatic upgrade in offensive firepower and defensive rim protection the Lakers need. While they gave up THT and Nunn, the Lakers should still have a solid group of valuable young role players coming off the bench, including Malik Monk, Austin Reaves, and Stanley Johnson, along with veteran Carmelo Anthony.
Trading for Wood, Hield, and Brogdon should be the Lakers’ top option to upgrade next season’s starting lineup. They give the Lakers the 3-point shooting, rim protection, and perimeter defense they need to win it all.
2. Trade for Jerami Grant, Evan Fournier, and Kemba Walker
Jerami Grant, 27-years old, 6′ 8″, 210 lbs
Averaging 19.1/4.1/2.6 in 32.3 mpg
Shooting 42.0%/34.0%/83.9% on 5.3 3PAKemba Walker, 31-years old, 6′ 0″, 184 lbs
Averaging 11.6/3.0/3.5 in 25.6 mpg
Shooting 40.3%/36.7%/84.8% on 5.4 3PAEvan Fournier, 29-years old 6′ 6″, 205 lbs
Averaging 15.2/4.3/2.5 in 39.2 mpg
Shooting 42.0%/39.0%/69.9% on 7.6 3PA
The Lakers’ next option to redo what they did wrong last offseason is trade Westbrook, Horton-Tucker, Nunn, and their 2027 and 2029 first round picks for three new starters in Jerami Grant, Evan Fournier, and Kemba Walker.
By trading Russ’ $47 million expiring contract to the Knicks in a salary dump for Kemba Walker, Evan Fournier, Nerlens Noel, and Cam Reddish, the Lakers could avoid sacrificing a first round pick to move Westbrook. Instead, they essentially break Westbrook’s $47 million contract into four separate contracts for $9.1 million, $10.0 million, $18.0 million, and $5.9 million that they can keep or flip or aggregate for different players.
The star player the Lakers land in this rebuilding scenario is 27-year old Jerami Grant, who is the bigger 3&D wing the Lakers desperately need to complement their LeBron James and Anthony Davis small ball lineups. Jerami gives the Lakers the small forward they have missed who can score from all three levels and, most importantly, give the Lakers the elite wing defender who can guard bigger scoring wings like Kawhi Leonard.
A starting lineup for next season of Kemba Walker, Evan Fournier, Jerami Grant, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis would be a major upgrade over the Lakers’ current starters, especially in 3-point shooting and firepower. While they lost THT, Johnson, and Nunn, the Lakers still have solid help off the bench in returnees Malik Monk, Austin Reaves, and Carmelo Anthony and new additions from the Knicks in Cam Reddish and Alex Burks.
Trading for Grant, Fournier, and Walker should be a top option for Lakers to upgrade next season’s starting lineup. They give the starting lineup a huge boost in offensive firepower and high volume 3-point shooting.
3. Trade for Christian Wood, Eric Gordon, and John Wall
Christian Wood, 26-years old, 6′ 9″, 214 lbs
Averaging 17.9/10.1/2.2 in 31.2 mpg
Shooting 49.4%/38.1%/60.8% on 4.9 3PAEric Gordon, 33-years old, 6′ 3″, 215lbs
Averaging 13.9/2.0/2. 8 in 29.8 mpg
Shooting 47.6%/41.1%/77.1% on 5.4 3PAJohn Wall, 31-years old 6′ 3″, 210 lbs
Averaging 20.6/3.2/6.9 in 32.2 mpg
Shooting 40.4%/31.7%/74.9% on 6.2 3PA
The Lakers’ third option to redo what they did wrong last offseason is to trade Westbrook, THT, Nunn, Johnson, and their 2027 and 2029 first round picks for three new starters in Christian Wood, Eric Gordon, and John Wall.
The Lakers are essentially swapping Russell Westbrook and their 2027 first round pick for John Wall and Talen Horton-Tucker, Kendrick Nunn, Stanley Johnson, and their 2029 first round pick for Eric Gordon and Christian Wood. Wood, Gordon, and Wall would be a massive upgrade for the Lakers’ starting lineup over this season. Suddenly, the Lakers would not only boast better spacing and 3-point shooting but also better interior and perimeter defense.
There’s a lot to like about this trade for the Lakers. They get a proven quality point guard replacement for Westbrook in John Wall, a starting stretch five center in Christian Wood to let LeBron and AD play their preferred positions. The Lakers get an elite high volume, high percentage 3-point shooter in veteran shooting guard Eric Gordon, who averaged over 40% on over five 3-point attempts per game while defending multiple positions at an elite level.
A starting lineup for next season of John Wall, Eric Gordon, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Christian Wood could be a championship team with the lethal firepower and rim protection and perimeter defense the Lakers need. While they gave up THT, Nunn, and Johnson, the Lakers should still have a solid group of valuable role players coming off the bench, including young Malik Monk and Austin Reaves and elite veteran Carmelo Anthony.
Trading for Wood, Gordon, and Wall should be one of the Lakers’ options to upgrade next season’s starting lineup. This is a deal the Lakers should seriously consider to add three championship quality starters.
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The one interesting option I did not address in my article was the benefit of buying out and then stretching and waiving Russ, which would then allow the Lakers to use their two first round draft picks on three new starters.
While I’m not a fan of W&S for as big a contract as Russ;, it could appeal to the Lakers because they could then re-sign Monk for $10.2M, which would hard cap the Lakers and save mucho tax dollars, which we know Jeanie loves to do.
A third option I like is John Wall buying out his contract with Houston and then signing for the minimum with the Lakers. That could be a great move for both Wall and the Lakers.
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Three trade scenarios where Lakers get second chance to redo last summer's Russ trade:
1. Trade for Christian Wood, Buddy Hield, Malcolm Brogdon
2. Trade for Jerami Grant, Evan Fournier, Kemba Walker
3. Trade for Christian Wood, Eric Gordon, John Wallhttps://t.co/j9yyUDB26z
— LakerTom (@LakerTom) March 11, 2022
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Imagine if the Lakers had three quality starters next season alongside LeBron and AD like Wood, Hield, and Brogdon or Grant, Fournier, and Walker. That would mean that Reaves, Monk, and Johnson would be our bench and not our other starters. Three new starters would be a monster upgrade for the Lakers.
That’s the big difference right now. The Lakers lack legitimate NBA championship starters and size at the 1, 2, and 3 positions. Fix that this summer and the Lakers will win #18.
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The Los Angeles Lakers need to win games and moving Russell Westbrook to the bench the rest of the season and staggering his minutes with James and Davis could make it easier to build a winning starting lineup and rotations.
One of the major reasons the Lakers have been unable to win many games this season has been their poor roster construction, which led head coach Frank Vogel to regularly deploy a collection of fundamentally flawed lineups. Rob Pelinka didn’t do Frank Vogel any favors when he gave him a James, Davis, Westbrook superstar big three. Russ hasn’t fit well and his presence makes it hard to surround LeBron and AD with shooting and defense.
The Lakers were desperate to find shooters and defenders to surround James and Davis but trading for Russell Westbrook, who is not a good shooter or defender, only exacerbated the situation and made it worse. Forget injuries to LeBron and AD. The reality is Lakers’ lineups with all three superstars LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook have played a total of 376 minutes this season with a negative net rating of -2.5.
The only strategy the Lakers haven’t tried is bringing Westbrook off the bench and staggering his minutes versus James and Davis to make it easer to surround them with shooters and defenders and let Russ feast against backups. The Lakers are desperate to win games and reverting to a starting lineup with just two superstars could be the catalyst to enable Frank Vogel to create more effective starting lineups and rotations and win more games.
Let’s take a look at how moving Russell Westbrook to the bench and staggering his minutes with LeBron and AD could help the Los Angeles Lakers win more games and maybe find success in the playoffs.
1. Lakers’ Starting Lineup Will Be Better Without Westbrook
Russell Westbrook starting not only takes possessions from LeBron James and Anthony Davis but Russ’ lack of gravity as a 3-point shooter makes it easy to pack the paint and prevent LeBron and AD from attacking the rim.
Even more distressing is the recent scuttlebutt we’re hearing behind the scenes that Westbrook has become almost defiant and pushed back “when coaches and teammates have tried to broach changes in his role or approach.” Word is both the Lakers and Westbrook are ready to move on next season, which raises the question of what the Lakers should do with Russ these last 20 games since the relationship may become adversarial.
Removing Russ from the starting lineup would give Lakers head coach Frank three instead of two starting positions to add the playmaking, shooting, and defense needed to complement superstars James and Davis. Building an elite starting lineup around three superstars is almost impossible as there is no way to ‘surround’ LeBron, AD, and Russ with playmakers, shooters, and defenders when you only have two starters available.
Frankly, the time’s come to stop treating Russ like he’s a legit third superstar on a championship caliber team. He’s now become the mistake the Lakers will likely have to sacrifice a couple of draft picks to fix this summer. Truth is Westbrook is just a poor fit as starter because what he brings to the table offensively or defensively does not complement LeBron James and Anthony Davis or make it easier for them excel at either end of the court.
Right now, the Lakers are losing the minutes when LeBron, AD, and Russ are on the court together. Benching Russ could be the solution to the Lakers winning the minutes the starters are on the floor together going forward.
2. Westbrook Will Be More Effective Player Coming Off Bench
While Westbrook will not be happy coming off the bench for the last 20 games of this season, it could be an chance for him to showcase his brand and what he’s capable of doing when not limited to being third option.
Russell Westbrook’s subpar season has clearly been =impacted by playing most of his minutes alongside LeBron James and/or Anthony Davis. He has a -4.0 Net Rating playing with James and a -2.3 Net Rating and with Davis. Russ has actually played better without LeBron James than with him this season, averaging 21.4 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 8.6 assists while shooting 44.8/345.7/72,2% in 35.5 minutes in 17 games without LeBron James.
Westbrook has struggled mightily when playing with LeBron and AD, often deferring to them rather than playing his normal super aggressive game. Bringing him off the bench will put Russ in situations where he can excel. Westbrook should realize his game is better suited to come off the bench, where he can once again be the alpha dog and his relentless attacking style will be able to take advantage of playing against a team’s backup players.
Now that the Lakers and Russ have mutually agreed to part ways at the end of this season, Russ needs to be sold on the idea this is the best way for him to show teams his subpar season is primarily due to his fit on the Lakers. He needs to understand that becoming a force off the bench without LeBron and AD could be the perfect opportunity to showcase his game over the next 20 games, the play-in tournament, and ultimately the NBA Playoffs.
Russ’ market value has taken a hard hit with the Lakers and a chance to be the Lakers’ alpha player who gets the touches and shots off the bench could benefit the Lakers need to win games and Russ to redeem his brand.
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I find it interesting that the front office wants Russ to come off the bench but it’s Vogel who doesn’t want to make that move, primarily because he thinks Russ could be a big positive factor down the stretch and in the playoffs.
Is there anything to be gained by playing Russ off the bench? Were AD healthy and playing, I would say there’s a lot to gain by moving Russ to the bench, including an upgraded starting lineup with enough shooting and defense to complement LeBron and AD. So hard to fill all the holes when there are only 2 other starters.
Lot depends on Russ. He had a relatively ‘good’ game last night, although more turnovers than assists again. It’s still the chaos and lack of effort defensively at times that destroys chemistry when he misses layups and turns the ball over.
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While it would have been better to have moved Russ to bench earlier, the Lakers should still make change now to give us an improved starting lineup with better defense and shooting to complement LeBron and AD and a full-throttle version of Russ coming off the bench surrounded by shooters feasting on reserves in the playoffs.
Lakers have 19 more games to go to figure out how to free up the starting lineup and setup Russ for success coming off the bench in the playoffs. That should be one of the regular season goals for the rest of the season.
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Back in high school, there was a Sr. who got to start out of respect and the fact he was pretty beloved by the squad. He was quickly sat down after playing 5-6 minutes and more skilled players would have to quickly step up. Give Russ those 5-6 minutes and quickly sit him.
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That’s a good idea, @therealhtj. I honestly think we are beginning to see the end of Russ’s career in the league at the end of his current contract unless he takes a significant pay cut. But, yeah, I like your idea, out of respect for his hall of fame career. Think of Melo as an example.
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ESPN Sources: There’s an increasing push among many in the Lakers organization to demote nine-time All-Star Russell Westbrook from the starting lineup, but so far coach Frank Vogel has resisted bringing him off the bench: https://t.co/2CyO729oZW
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 6, 2022
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The more LeBron and AD get injured, the more I think bringing in a young stretch center like Turner or Wood makes a lot of sense. It would let the Lakers still play the same small ball style of play with Turner or Wood stretching the floor.
What’s ironic about the entire situation is if the Lakers had made that decision last year, head coach Frank Vogel might not be fighting for his coaching life right now. Anyway, time for the Lakers to invest in starting center for the future in either Myles Turner or Christian Wood.
The Lakers have shown interest in Turner last summer and in Wood at the trade deadline so there’s clearly some interest by Pelinka in adding a stretch five center to strengthen the Lakers front court situation. Both players are 26-years old, although Turner is the more proven product and is much bigger. Wood may be a better 3-point shooter and more explosive finisher attacking the rim.
Either would bring dynamic athleticism and shot blocking to the Lakers. While I do like Jerami Grant, I’m not sure he would have the impact that Wood or Turner would have because we would still be relying on AD and LeBron at the five and four full time rather than as a closing lineup because they can platy big with LeBron, AD, and Turner or Wood.