Lakerholics

After striking out at the trade deadline, the Lakers should aggressively pursue Orlando shooting guard Gary Harris if he gets bought out. The key to getting him to sign with the Lakers could be a promise he would be a starter.

Harris is a 27-year old, 6′ 5,” 210 lbs veteran shooting guard who averaged 11.7 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 29.5 minutes per game and will likely be one of the highly sought players in this season’s buyout market. Used to playing off the ball and reliably good on defense, Gary shot 44.4% from the field, 38.8% on 4.9 threes per game, and a sterling 84.4% from the line. He would immediately be the best two-way guard on the Lakers’ roster.

The competition to sign Gary Harris if he’s bought out will be intense and the Lakers are not the post-season favorite they were the previous two seasons when they signed buyout players Markieff Morris and Andre Drummond. Offering Gary a chance to start for the Los Angeles Lakers and compete for an NBA championship alongside superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis could be intoxicating for a young player heading into free agency.

For a young player like Gary, a chance to start and play for the big market Los Angeles Lakers could be the best brand marketing move he could make to raise his value as a player. No other team can the visibility the Lakers can. Harris would be a great fit on the Lakers both short and long-term. He could even earn a rotation role and a new contract with the Lakers. Even though this is his ninth season in the league, he’s still only just 27-years old.

The Lakers should prioritize looking for buyout players who could be viable starters alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis and then using the opportunity to start as their primary pitch to get them to sign with Lakers.

For the second straight year, the Lakers failed to make a move at the trade deadline, declining opportunities to improve the current roster and saving their 2027 first round pick to package with Russ for a third star this summer.

In a move designed to transform the failed Westbrook experiment into a home run opportunity, the Lakers are willing to write off the rest of this season to position themselves to trade for Damian Lillard this offseason. Best case scenario, the Lakers could package Russ’ $47.1 million expiring contract, Nunn’s $5.0 million expiring contract, Horton-Tucker’s $10.3 million contract, and unprotected 2027 and 2029 first round draft picks.

Leave it to the Los Angeles Lakers to try to turn a failed Westbrook experiment into a home run opportunity to trade for a legitimate third superstar who’s a more complementary fit with superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Not only are there no longer any untradeable contracts but there’s also an amazing transformation that happens whenever a significant player contract becomes an expiring contract.

That’s the game the Lakers are now playing and LeBron James and Anthony Davis both agreed to as Rob Pelinka turned down possible trade after possible trade because he would not give up their 2027 first round pick. Having the ability for two possibly unprotected post-LeBron James’ draft picks will give the Lakers the capability to trade Westbrook in a package that will bring back a third superstar who really fits LeBron and AD.

How the Lakers finish the season continues to be paramount. In many ways Los Angeles is still betting the house they can make the Russ experiment work and even rehabilitate Horton-Tucker’s and Nunn’s value as players. Knowing LeBron and AD had to be supportive of the decision, we can expect the Lakers to come together as a team and recommit to finishing the season strong and competing for a championship. Could that possibly work?

To start with, I don’t see any scenario for the rest of the season where the Lakers start winning without Russell Westbrook and Talen Horton-Tucker playing way better and Kendrick Nunn actually getting back on the court. Without question, I don’t see that happening with Frank Vogel as head coach. Coaches often have a shelf life with players and I think Frank no longer inspires and motivates this team. With 26 games remaining, the time may have come for the Lakers to fire Frank Vogel and promote Phil Handy.

The Lakers showed last night against the Blazers that Russell Westbrook was not their only problem. It’s also clear to everybody that Frank Vogel is not going to coaching Lakers next season. Lame duck coach is not answer. Lakers need to pull the plug on Frank and make Handy the Interim Coach for the rest of the season. That’s a move that would give the Lakers a chance to turn around the rest of this season so they’ll be in good stead this summer.

Lakers cannot leave Frank Vogel in charge of the franchise’s destiny the next 26 games. Time to change coaches and give this team its best chance to salvage what has become a nightmare season for the Lakers and their fans.

The Lakers must trade Russell Westbrook to the Rockets before tomorrow’s trade deadline or risk suffering a devastating season where fans are booing, players are quitting, and the storied franchise is inundated with dysfunction.

Last night’s embarrassing and humiliating loss to the champion Milwaukee Bucks was hopefully the last straw as the once proud Los Angeles Lakers were crushed by Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kris Middleton, and a superior roster. LeBron James admitted in the post-game press conference the Lakers were not at the same level as the Bucks and sources confirmed the Lakers as a team no longer think they can win with Russell Westbrook as their third star.

Fortunately, it’s become obvious Russell Westbrook is a bad fit with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Lakers needed a third star whom they could rely upon to complement their two superstars with shooting and defense. The Lakers third star has turned out to be 24-year old Malik Monk, whom the Lakers signed to a 1-year veteran’s minimum contract but who has not become the third star they had hoped Russell Westbrook would become.

The big question, of course, is whether the Lakers will address the Russell Westbrook situation at the trade deadline or wait until summer to resolve it. Before last night’s game, the thought was the Lakers were likely to wait. Watching Los Angeles rally without Russ in the fourth quarter to turn a 30-point rout into a 10-point game, however, may have added pressure for Rob Pelinka to pull the plug on the Westbrook experiment now rather than wait.

So let’s look at some of the reasons why it makes sense for the Lakers to trade Russ now rather than waiting for this summer when his $47 million player option for next season will become a more attractive expiring contract.

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1. Trading Russ now is only way Lakers win championship this season

The undeniable truth of this version of the Los Angeles Lakers has always been that they are legitimate championship contenders as long as they have a healthy and rested LeBron James and Anthony Davis playing at their peaks.

Unfortunately, every truth has its limit and the Lakers have now come to the conclusion that they cannot win a championship with Russell Westbrook as the third star. The question is when should the Lakers cut the cord with Russ? There’s a contingent in the Lakers’ front office that is willing to write off the rest of this season in the belief that they will be in a better position to resolve the Westbrook conundrum more favorably this summer than at the deadline.

Standing pat for the rest of this season should be a non-starter for anybody in the Lakers’ front office, not with 37-year old LeBron James championship window getting smaller each year and he and Anthony Davis playing great. Knowing they can’t win with Russ, the Lakers must then make the immediate moves to trade Russ to the Rockets, even if it costs them their 2027 first round

The only way the Lakers have a chance to win their 18th NBA championship this season is by ending the Russell Westbrook experiment right now and giving LeBron and AD a longshot opportunity to win another championship.

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2. Not trading Russ now could ultimately lead to Lakers losing Monk

As we approach tomorrow’s trade deadline, the Lakers are in a tough situation with too many roster holes to fill and too few trading chips to fix everything. Trading Russ right now would put the Lakers in better position this summer.

The one blazing bright light in the darkness right now is the rise of Malik Monk, who’s been everything the Lakers had hoped for when trading for Russell Westbrook but from a 24-year old on a veteran’s minimum contract. Monk is immensely grateful for the Lakers signing him last summer when other teams had little interest and has not only fought his way into the starting lineup but also established himself as the team’s 3rd best player.

While Monk has become the third star the Lakers wanted, they don’t have his Bird or Early Bird rights and will be limited to offering him the $6.2 million taxpayer mid level exception this summer, which may be less than his value. There will likely be teams offering Monk the full non-taxpayer $10.1 million mid level exception. The Lakers will probably be able to keep Monk if they have a successful run the rest of the season and Monk may be willing to stay.

The worst outcome for the Lakers would be Westbrook staying and the Lakers continuing to be a losing team. The Lakers need to continue winning to ensure Malik Monk will wants to re-sign this summer rather than testing free agency.

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3. Not trading Russ now could ultimately lead to LeBron leaving Lakers

The last thing the Lakers want is for LeBron James to ever consider leaving. Watching James’ body language last night, especially when Russ came over to console him and Anthony on the bench late in the game, was concerning.

If the Lakers stand pat at the trade deadline, they’ll have essentially wasted two of LeBron’s remaining few seasons without winning a championship. That could possibly mean that next season might be LeBron’s last as an L.A. Laker. Listening to LeBron say there was no way for the Lakers to get to the level of the current champion Milwaukee Bucks is not the kind of statements that give ownership any confidence LeBron is going to re-sign with the Los Angeles.

The Laker didn’t sign LeBron James nor did James sign with the Lakers just to win one championship. Nor is LeBron blameless as it was dinner at his house with Russ and Anthony that set the stage for the Lakers trading for Westbrook. LeBron and the Lakers expect James to finish his career in purple and gold, even if that means L.A. will ultimately have to draft Bronny James in the 2024 NBA draft. Keeping Russ could allow his dysfunction to derail the season.

The problem with keeping Russell Westbrook the rest of this season is the team is likely to continue to struggle to win, there’s going to be problems between Vogel and Westbrook, angry fans are going to boo and blame Russ. The truth is trading for Russ was a major mistake and the Lakers need to rectify the situation as soon as possible. They cannot afford for Westbrook, if kept for the rest of the season, to become a cancer that infects LeBron James.

The Lakers are at what could be a major franchise inflection point that could derail their relationship with LeBron and Klutch Sports at a point. Keeping Russell Westbrook for the rest of this season could be risking LeBron James.

Four days from the trade deadline, the Los Angeles Lakers are facing a tough challenge that may require them to make major changes in their franchise strategy to salvage their championship hopes and optimize LeBron’s legacy.

With head coach Frank Vogel benching superstar guard Russell Westbrook as the Lakers headed into overtime last night against the New York, Los Angeles may have reached the end of the rope with Russ as their third star. Watching the Lakers play in overtime without the chaos and uncertainty that comes with Russ on the court, it was obvious we were watching why moving on from Russell could qualify as the equivalent of addition by subtraction.

The Lakers 2021–22 season and the legacy of LeBron James are on the line. Nor can the Lakers wait for summer to fix things. Here are three big strategic changes to salvage the Lakers’ season and LeBron James’ legacy:

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1. Pull the Plug on the Russell Westbrook Experiment

The first big strategic change the Lakers must make is pulling the plug on the Russell Westbrook experiment. Blame it on a lack of time together due to injuries but it’s clear the Lakers need to trade Russell Westbrook right now.

Fortunately for Los Angeles, there’s a willing trade partner and a deal whose parameters make common sense for the Lakers to pursue. Houston has told the Lakers they would swap John Wall for Westbrook and a first round pick. Wall may not have the motor and athleticism of Westbrook but he is also not the uncontrollable or unpredictable wild card Russ has become. The Lakers need a toned down version of Russ, which is exactly what John could be.

Since John Wall plays the point, he could slide right into Russell Westbrook’s starting role but with fewer turnovers and blown layups and defensive rotations. Here’s the Westbrook for Wall trade with the Houston Rockets:

The price for swapping Russell Westbrook for John Wall is the Lakers’ 2027 first round pick. While some might argue the Lakers would be wiser to wait for summer to move Russ, addition by subtraction says to move him now.

Hopefully, since Wall is a Klutch Sports client, the Lakers can make a deal with him where he turns down his $47 million player option next season for more money over more years and a chance to finish career as a Laker. This is where Klutch becomes important because the Lakers need Wall to decline his player option and instead take more money (maybe $75 million over 3 years) so they can get under the hard cap to re-sign Malik Monk.

The perfect situation is where Wall declines his option and the Lakers give him a new 3-year deal. Otherwise, Lakers will trade his expiring contract this summer as part of restructuring their cap space to retain Malik Monk.

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2. Accept Luxury Taxes as the New Price for Winning

With a reasonably healthy and rested LeBron James and Anthony Davis playing as well as they did to win the championship in the bubble, the Los Angeles Lakers are still the team nobody wants to meet in the playoffs.

But the recent moves by the Los Angeles Clippers should be the final straw to alert Jeanie Buss and her family that the rules for what you have to do to win NBA championships has changed with mega luxury taxes the new entry fee. The Clippers, Warriors, and Nets have all accepted over $100 million in luxury taxes as the cost of competing for a championship in today’s NBA. If the Lakers want to win #18, they have to be willing to pay more luxury taxes.

That will not change going forward and if the price to win now includes paying mega luxury taxes, then the Buss family has a major decision to make as the Lakers’ owner. To win, the Lakers must pay more luxury taxes. The Lakers already lost a valuable player and trading chip in Alex Caruso so the Lakers could avoid incurring more luxury taxes. Time for the Buss family accept the new rules and be willing to pay mega luxury tax bills to win it all.

The Lakers’ $5 billion net worth per Forbes was built by the franchise’s total focus on winning championships. Yes, they are in Los Angeles but the value of their brand is a direct result of their winning championships.

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3. Trade for Christian Wood to Become Third Star

There’s no question the Lakers’ best lineups are their small ball lineups. There’s also no question the Lakers’ biggest weakness is another front court player who can get them points, rebounds, and defense in the paint.

As part of their negotiation with the Houston Rockets to trade Russell Westbrook for John Wall, the Los Angeles Lakers need to expand that deal to include 26-year old 6′ 9,” 214 lb power forward/center Christian Wood. Christian would allow the Lakers to replace Howard and Jordan with a younger, more dynamic front court player who can block shots, stretch the floor, and play both the power forward and center positions.

Wood is a talented young player who’s had some issues as a teammate that have probably lowered his trade value but he’s produced great numbers with the Pistons last season and the Rockets this season and still has upside. He averaged 17.6 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 31.0 minutes per game while shooting 48.5% from the field and 37.1% on 4.9 attempted threes per game. His one weakness is he’s only a 61.5% free throw shooter.

Trading for Wood would ultimately require the Lakers to join the Clippers, Warriors, and Nets as mega luxury tax payers as well as costing Horton-Tucker, Nunn, and a pair of second round draft picks to sweeten the deal:

Wood has a year and a half left on his contract and will then be eligible for a huge extension. Keeping Wood long-term would clearly require the Lakers to agree to pay more luxury taxes. That’s just how the game today is played. Wood would also give the Lakers the size, shooting, and defense they need to make their starting lineup elite. A starting lineup of John Wall, Malik Monk, LeBron James, Christian Wood, and Anthony Davis would rule.

What Wood gives the Lakers is a player the same age as AD and Monk and could be the basis of a future Lakers big three once LeBron James retires. Wood is an aggressive offensive players with improving defensive instincts.

Forget the stumbles and disappointments of first half of the season because the Lakers will finally get an opportunity to see if the superstar big three they envisioned when trading for Russell Westbrook can actually work.

Anthony Davis is expected to be back in the starting lineup as the Lakers get ready to play three critical road games against the best of the East. They play the Heat tomorrow, the Nets on Tuesday, and the 76ers on Wednesday. Showing they can compete with the top teams in the East will not only prove the Lakers are a legitimate contender but could also determine whether or not Frank Vogel remains as head coach of the Los Angles Lakers.

Because of untimely injuries and Covid protocols, the Lakers’ superstar big three has only played 15 games out of the team’s 46 total games and 291 minutes of the team’s 2,248 total minutes. That’s just under 13% of the time. With 36 games remaining in the 2021–22 regular season and 10 games until the February 10th trade deadline, the Lakers will get a chance to see how their superstar big three fares and whether they need to make changes.

As a team, the Lakers have been unable to play good, consistent basketball. Every time they appear to turn the corner, they instead find a way to fail. No more excuses. Here’s what Lakers need to do to take advantage of AD.

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1. Fix the Starting Lineup

Vogel’s lineups have been a major source of concern. Frank needs to understand his job is still at risk and, now that he has AD back, he needs to make smart decisions about the Lakers’ starting lineup and rotations.

LeBron, AD, and Russ will all start and usually close games as expected. Russ will start at the one, LeBron at the four, and Anthony at the five. That leaves starting roles for a shooting guard and small forward to go with the big 3. While there’s some question about who was making lineup decisions for the Lakers, it does appear right now that head coach Frank Vogel has been given that power for the time being, as was shown by his benching of Westbrook.

Last night, Vogel started Westbrook, Bradley, James, Ariza, and Howard but swapped Howard for Johnson the second half. With AD back, it’s obvious Johnson should be the Lakers small forward to go with James and Davis. Stanley Johnson starting the second half allowed the Lakers to switch everything on defense, which should be a strategic goal rest of this season and the playoffs as it makes it easier to stay in front of your man.

Starting today, Frank needs to to replace 6′ 3″ Avery Bradley in the starting lineup with 6′ 5″ Austin Reaves, who is the the Lakers’ best perimeter defender and the perfect player to complement their superstar big three.

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2. Make Russ the Third Option

One of the problems the Lakers have endured in this third straight Covid and injury plagued season is LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook were only on the court together for 15 games and 291 minutes.

With James missing 12 games and Davis 19 games, Westbrook was left to function as the team’s second option for much of this season rather than third option that was envisioned, which led to a chaotic first half of season. Hopefully, the moves by Vogel to make Westbrook more accountable for his turnovers, poor shot selection, and half-hearted defense and the return of Anthony Davis will be enough for Russ to embrace being the third option.

This season marks the third straight year Russell Westbrook will have had to adjust to a new team and new teammates. In his first year with the Rockets and then with the Wizards, Russ played better the second half of the season. While the Lakers discussed trading Westbrook, it appears now the goal is to give the Lakers’ superstar big three an opportunity to show what they can accomplish now that LeBron, AD, and Russ are finally healthy.

The Lakers have seen Russ make a legitimate effort to adjust his game to fit what the team needs from him as their third superstar. With LeBron and AD healthy, Russ now needs to embrace being the Lakers’ third superstar.

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3. Narrow the Team’s Rotations

After playing so many crazy lineups and rotations due to injuries and Covid protocols, the Lakers finally have enough key players available that they can start playing a legitimate starting lineup backed up by quality rotations.

With Russ starting at the one, Reaves the two, Johnson the three, LeBron the four, and AD the five, Frank Vogel needs to make tough decisions to narrow the team’s rotation to 9 or 10 players instead of the usual 11 or 12 players. Narrowing the bench rotation to just 4 players — Carmelo Anthony, Malik Monk, Kendrick Nunn, and Dwight Howard — will eliminate the terrible indefensible lineups Frank Vogel was forced to play earlier in the season.

Narrowing the rotation essentially means players like Avery Bradley, Wayne Ellington, Trevor Ariza, DeAndre Jordan, and Talen Horton-Tucker will be relegated to third backup roles in case of key players injuries or foul trouble. The Lakers have 36 games left in the season and their top priority should be establishing consistent starting lineups and rotations so everybody knows their role and what to expect as the team heads into the playoffs.

The major challenge Frank Vogel has overcome is his hesitancy to remove underperforming players from the starting lineup or rotations. Vogel needs to remove Avery Bradley from the Lakers’ starting lineup and rotations.

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4. Take Advantage of a Rested AD

One of the keys to the Lakers winning their 17th NBA championship in the bubble was having a healthy and rested LeBron James and Anthony Davis as a result of the four and a half month Covid driven suspension of the season.

As the Lakers head into the last 36 games on this regular season schedule, they should benefit from Anthony Davis having had over a month off to strengthen his injured knee and spend time fixing his shooting mechanics. Anthony Davis needs to be the bubble AD if the Lakers are to come back from a disappointing first half of the season and win their 18th NBA championship. Anything less will not be enough for the Lakers to prevail.

Lakers need Davis to get back his stroke from the bubble playoffs when he averaged 27.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.4 blocks, shooting 57.1% from the field, 38.3% from deep, and 83.2% from the line. That would be an improvement over his regular season stats, where he’s averaged 23.3 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 2.0 blocks, shooting 52.1% from field, 17.9% from deep, and 72.7% from the line.

Now that AD is healthy and rested, the Lakers need him to be the lethal midrange and 3-point shooter he was during the bubble championship. A healthy and rested Anthony Davis will be the key to the winning it all.

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5. Trade THT at the Deadline

21-year old Talen Horton-Tucker is the Lakers most valuable trading chip. Like they did with Klutch Sports’ client KCP, the Lakers rewarded THT with a big raise right before they’re likely to trade him to another team.

Talen’s problem has always been his fit alongside LeBron, AD, and Russ. Like the Lakers three superstars, THT is a player who’s strength is his ability to attack the paint and finish at the rim and his weakness is 3-point shooting. The Lakers need to move THT and his 3-year $30 million contract for a player who is a better fit for the Lakers, ideally a bigger, longer 3&D wing with 6′ 8″ to 6′ 10″ size who can defend other teams bigger wing scorers.

The Lakers have already offered THT, Nunn, and their 2027 first round draft pick for Jerami Grant but the Pistons don’t appear ready to accept that offer. Besides Grant, the Lakers have been linked to numerous other NBA starters. Pacers’ Myles Turner, Rockets Christian Wood and Eric Gordon, Sixers’ Ben Simmons, Kings’ Harrison Barnes and Buddy Hield, Raptors’ Chris Boucher and Goran Dragic have all been rumored to be Laker trade targets.

In the end, the Lakers best fit could be an excellent 3&D guard like Eric Gordon or shot-blocking stretch five center like Myles Turner. Gordon or Turner would both help elevate the Lakers team defense back to the top.