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Would Lakers Be Committing Suicide By Bringing Back Russell Westbrook?

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The Los Angeles Lakers have done a great job executing an inspired public relations campaign to convince other teams they’d prefer to bring Russell Westbrook back rather than giving up two first round picks to trade him.

With less than three weeks until training camp, the Lakers now appear to be toughening their stance on trading Russell Westbrook and getting ready to head into camp and start the regular season with him on active roster. The Lakers believe neither the Pacers or Jazz trades are deserving of a second first round draft pick and, barring those teams lowering their asking price, the Lakers would prefer to go forward with Russ on the roster.
 
Whether the Lakers will change their position on trading Westbrook remains to be seem but the team’s current roster is an unfinished product that lacks 3-point shooting and bigger wings to backup James and Davis. Frankly, anybody who watched how poorly Westbrook fit on the Lakers last season has to shudder at the thought of the Lakers wasting one of the only two guaranteed seasons left on LeBron James contract with Los Angeles.

The big question is whether the Los Angeles Lakers are committing suicide by bringing back Russell Westbrook, who refused to be coached last season and could theoretically cause total chaos and disarray in the locker room. Whether Darvin Ham can transform Westbrook into a plus contributor who plays defense and accepts a role is just one of the Lakers’ challenges. Other issues include the Lakers overall lack of 3-point shooting and wing size.

While I believe the Lakers are still just posturing and will ultimately trade Westbrook this offseason, let’s take a look at where they might be at the midseason trade deadline and next summer if they bring back Russ.

Where Would Lakers Be At Trade Deadline If They Keep Westbrook?

Unless the Lakers are willing to sacrifice the coming season and one of the two guaranteed years they have left on LeBron James’ contract, they need to be better positioned to trade Russ at the deadline than this summer.

The litmus test is whether the Lakers will have an opportunity to trade Russ for more at the deadline than this summer. In other words, did waiting until the trade deadline enable the Lakers a get better trade for Westbrook? The key midseason dates are December 15, 2022, when most players who have been traded will be eligible to be traded again, and February 9, 2023, which is the league’s midseason trade deadline for the 2022–23 season.

The Lakers early schedule is brutal and should give them an early test of whether or not Ham could make Westbrook work. Unlike this offseason, they should be able to dump Russ at the deadline without giving up picks. The problem is the Lakers are also not likely to get much back from trading Russ at the deadline since he’s just an expiring contract who’s already been paid half or more of the annual salary for the last year of his contract.

The only good thing that could happen at the deadline is the Lakers getting an opportunity to trade for Kyrie Irving or another star who is suddenly on the outs with his team. The Lakers would only trade picks for a third star. Following up with the Pacers or Jazz to see if they would accept one pick is also probably a no-go since the Lakers would not be willing to give up a pick or picks unless it would be for a superstar that they would sign long-term.

In the end, chances are that the Lakers would not be able to significantly upgrade the roster at the trade deadline because they appear to be saving their draft picks to use to find a third superstar or replacement for LeBron.

Where Would Lakers Be One Year From Now If They Keep Westbrook?

While running it back with Westbrook seems like a huge gamble, the Los Angeles Lakers apparently think the risk is not as great as it might seem and the benefits they get next summer could actually be worth the gamble.

So where would the Lakers be one year from now if they decide to bring back Russell Westbrook for the entire season and just allow his $47 million contract to expire at the end of the season and make no significant changes? Bringing back Westbrook is the Lakers’ stealth way of tanking as it could transform their 2023 first round pick into a lottery pick like last season when the Pels got a huge break when the Lakers’ pick was #9 last NBA draft.

Strategically, the Lakers would now have three rather than two first round draft picks in their portfolio to use to pursue a third superstar, although their 2023 first round pick could not be traded until day of the NBA draft. Having a top-10 pick in next year’s draft plus two post LeBron unprotected picks would improve the Lakers trade portfolio except that, due to players with expiring contracts and minimum salaries, they have no chips to trade.

What the Lakers will have is $35 million in projected cap space plus 13 open spots. While that’s not enough to sign Kyrie or another superstar to a max contract, there’s a chance the Lakers can make it work with multiple teams. Unfortunately, the lack of players to match salaries complicates the Lakers’ situation next summer. Aside from zero continuity, this is the problem with chasing a third superstars with cap space rather than tradeable contracts.

Bringing back Russ and allowing his contract to expire does give the Lakers multiple weapons like open cap space and multiple draft picks to acquire a third superstar like Kyrie but at the high cost of a second losing season.

Why Lakers’ Current Roster Screams Big Russell Westbrook Trade Coming!

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The Lakers’ current roster literally screams a big Russell Westbrook trade is coming. The roster desperately needs the 3-point shooting and bigger 3&D players that only trading Westbrook and first round picks can get for them.

If the Lakers don’t trade Westbrook for two or three legitimate rotation players, they’re going to be doomed to missing the playoffs for the second straight year. The current roster is simply too small and cannot shoot. Complicating the situation, the only trading chip the Lakers have to bring back the needed 3-point shooting and depth at the forward positions is Russell Westbrook. They cannot upgrade the roster without trading him.

The Lakers and their new head coach Darvin Ham continue to discuss the possibility the team may in the end decide to bring Russell Westbrook back. Frankly, not trading Westbrook will doom the Lakers to repeat last season.

Lakers’ Current Roster Is Unfinished Product

While Pelinka transformed the backend of the Lakers’ current roster to be younger and more athletic and versatile, the roster remains an unfinished project without needed starters and rotation players from Westbrook trade.

If the Lakers do not trade Westbrook, they will likely be stuck with something close to the above roster, which could be the worst roster any franchise has surrounded LeBron James with over his 20-year NBA career. The crazy risks of bringing back Westbrook notwithstanding, there is no way the Lakers can open this season with this roster which boasts no quality 3-point shooting or front court depth to support James and Davis.

To begin, there is no way the Lakers are going to be a playoff team if two of their five starters and five of their top ten rotation players, including LeBron’s and AD’s primary backups, are unproven minimum salary players. That’s just not how the NBA works. Besides superstars, you also need six to eight legitimate rotation players to complement your stars and fill out your starting lineup and rotation. Right now, the Lakers just have three of those.

More importantly, there is no way the Lakers go into the season with unproven Troy Brown, Jr., Juan Toscano-Anderson, and Wenyen Gabriel as backups to LeBron James and Anthony Davis at small and power forward. Unless the Lakers plan for James and Davis to play heavy minutes, they need to find better quality rotation players to back up their superstars. The lack of depth behind LeBron and AD makes this roster unworkable.

Finally, the biggest reason the Lakers cannot bring Westbrook back is this roster as currently constructed is surely the worst 3-point shooting team now in the NBA and the worst 3-point shooting team in LeBron’s career. Here are the 3-point shooting stats for the Lakers’ projected five starters and five backups. What’s frightening is there is not a single player among the Lakers best ten who is close to the league average of 37.4% on threes.

The Lakers can’t just pull the plug on trading Westbrook when the cost went up because running out an inexperienced and undersized starting lineup and rotation that can’t shoot, will be as big a disaster as last season.

Best Three Westbrook Trades for Lakers

Let’s make one thing clear. If the Lakers pursue one of the following three trades, it means they are going to go all-in and invest their two first round draft picks to win another NBA championship before LeBron James retires.

Forget about cap space for Kyrie Irving next summer because the Lakers aren’t going to waste two unprotected first round draft picks for potential free agents like Myles Turner or Bojan Bogdanovic and not re-sign them. The key to the Lakers giving up their two first round picks is getting back players who fit Anthony Davis’ timeline and can still be factors come 2027 or even 2029 on whether the Lakers are a playoff or lottery team.

The Lakers’ goal in trading Westbrook should be to fix the deficiencies that make the current roster unworkable by finding three legitimate rotation players who are elite 3-point shooters and include at least one 3&D wing. Unsaid is the principle that the Lakers should not give up draft picks, especially unprotected ones, unless they believe the players they are getting will help them win a championship this season and after LeBron retires.

Here are three trades involving Russell Westbrook and the Lakers’ two available first round draft picks that do an excellent job adding elite 3-point shooting and front court positional size to fix the team’s current roster.

1. Trade with Jazz for Bogdanovic, Beasley, Clarkson, & Vanderbilt

The Lakers trade Russell Westbrook, Kendrick Nunn, Wenyen Gabriel, and their 2027 and 2029 unprotected first round picks for four legitimate rotation players from Jazz including one starter and three primary backups.

Trade enables the Lakers to reduce minimum salary players from five players to just three and increase midlevel rotation players from just two to six players. Lakers also added three elite 3-point shooters in trade.

The Jazz trade is finally able to be consummated because recently traded Beasley and Vanderbilt can now be aggregated with other players. This could be the Russell Westbrook trade the Lakers choose because of depth.

2. Trade with Pacers & Knicks for Turner, Hield, & Reddish

The Lakers trade Russell Westbrook, Wenyen Gabriel, and their 2027 and 2029 unprotected picks for three legitimate rotation players from Jazz and Knicks including two starters and one critical primary backup.

Trade enables the Lakers to reduce minimum salary players from five players to just three and increase midlevel rotation players from just two to five players. Lakers also added three elite 3-point shooters in trade.

The Pacers trade is probably a better fit for the Lakers than the Jazz trade because of how great Myles Turner would fit in Darvin Ham’s systems and how he could unleash Anthony Davis to finally take the baton from LeBron.

3. Trade with Pacers & Jazz for Turner, Bogdanovic, & Beasley

The Lakers trade Russell Westbrook, Kendrick Nunn, Wenyen Gabriel, and 2027 and 2029 unprotected first round picks for three legitimate rotation players from the Pacers and Jazz, including two starters and one backup.

Trade enables the Lakers to reduce minimum salary players from five players to just three and increase midlevel rotation players from just two to five players. Lakers also added three elite 3-point shooters in trade.

In the end, this could be the best of all of the Westbrook trade options as it nets the Lakers the best two players available in Turner and Bogdanovic. This would be the trade Rob Pelinka should be trying to put together.

Lakers Have 20 Days Before Training Camp to Trade Westbrook

After today’s Westbrook and Beverley lovefest, expect the world to continue to ignore the obvious reality that there is simply no way the Lakers are going to open their season with the roster they currently have.

While it’s admirable that Ham thinks he can make Russ work, keeping Westbrook also means keeping the Lakers’ current roster with no way to fix the horrible 3-point shooting or lack of reliable backups for LeBron and AD. The harsh reality is the Lakers’ current roster is doomed to a fate similar to that of last year’s undersized and poor shooting roster. Ironically, it’s even possible that last year’s roster was even better than this year’s roster.

Posturing aside, the Los Angeles Lakers have no realistic option of fielding a competitive NBA team this season unless they trade Russell Westbrook and their two available first round draft picks for multiple rotation players.

What Do Los Angeles Lakers Really Want in a Russell Westbrook Trade?

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The Lakers have moved on from naïve dreams of trading for Kyrie Irving and fatal fantasies about running it back with Russell Westbrook. Now they need to figure out what they really want in a Russell Westbrook trade.

The Lakers’ position according to insiders is that they will not include both of their two available first round draft picks in a Westbrook trade unless the trade transforms them into a legitimate contender to win a championship. The Lakers’ current public position is none of their trade options, including the Indiana Pacers’ Myles Turner and Buddy Hield, elevate the team sufficiently to justify giving up two unprotected first round draft picks.

Per the insiders, the Lakers are not willing to take back more salary than they send out in a trade because of the luxury tax impact. Nor are they willing to take back contracts longer than LeBron James’ commitment. Finally, after trading Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson for Patrick Beverley, the Lakers have over $30 million in potential cap space next summer, which they could keep if they only took back expiring contracts.

The good news is the Lakers currently have two excellent opportunities to trade Russell Westbrook and draft capital for at least two legitimate starters or rotation players who would help the team’s need for size and shooting. The best fit would be the Pacers’ Myles Turner and Buddy Hield, which would likely require two first round picks. The alternative could be the Jazz’ Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic, who might cost just one pick. 

Let’s take a look at both Westbrook trades and analyze each trade’s pluses and minuses and try to figure out which trade makes the most sense for the Lakers right now and what will be the major factors driving their decision.

The Indiana Pacers’ Myles Turner and Buddy Hield

Contrary to what the Lakers would like you to believe, trading Russell Westbrook and two first round draft picks for Myles Turner and Buddy Hield would transform the Lakers into legitimate championship contenders.

The Pacers trade is clearly the Lakers’ best option to build a starting lineup and a roster that could legitimately compete for another NBA championship provided superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis could stay healthy. What makes the Pacers’ trade the Lakers’ best option is Myles Turner, who’s the perfect modern two-way center the Lakers and head coach Darvin Ham need to make the Buck’s 4-out offense and drop coverage defense work.

Turner’s a 26-year old, 6′ 11″, 250 lb center who averaged 12.9/7.1/1.0 while shooting 50.9/33.3/75.2%. He led the league in blocks the past two seasons and is a career 34.9% 3-point shooter who can effectively stretch the floor. Aside from being the perfect modern center to fill the Brook Lopez role in Ham’s system as the Lakers’ stretch five rim protector, Turner also gives Anthony Davis the perfect front court mate to dominate the next five years.

Most importantly, Turner gives the Lakers an elite rim protector on the court all 48 minutes of a game and the versatility to play two bigs with Turner and Davis or a small-ball-on-steroids lineup with AD at five like in the bubble. Right now, the Lakers’ biggest weakness is lack of a proven starting center. No disrespect to Thomas Bryant or Damian Jones but there is simply no way the Lakers are going to win a championship with either of them at the five.

Trading Westbrook and two picks for Turner and Hield would be the smartest move the Lakers could make. Despite their claims otherwise, they do know Turner and Hield make them a championship team

The Utah Jazz’ Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic

Everything in the media about Danny Ainge coveting the Lakers’ 2027 and 2029 unprotected first round draft picks and L.A. being interested in trading Russell Westbrook for Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic is just posturing.

What this is about is the Lakers convincing the Pacers to accept Russell Westbrook plus one unprotected pick and one pick swap for Turner and Hield so the Lakers can keep an available first round pick for midseason. The Pacers want to move Buddy Hield’s two-year contract and are willing to take on Westbrook’s expiring contract for two unprotected picks. Hopefully, they will ultimately agree to accept a pick swap instead of a second pick.

What makes the Jazz and Knicks deal a logical trading partner for the Lakers is the list of legitimate rotation players like Utah’s Conley, Bogdanovic, Beasley, and Clarkson and New York’s Randle, Rose, Grimes, and Fournier. There’s also Danny Ainge’s fascination with stealing what what he envisions as two of the NBA’s most valuable and heavily coveted future draft picks: Lakers 2027 and 2029 Unprotected Post LeBron First Round Picks.

Could the Lakers put together a Westbrook trade with Utah/New York that matched or exceeded what the they could get from the Pacers for two picks or was close to what the Pacers were offering but would only cost one pick? The Lakers could put together a group of three or four elite shooters from the Jazz and Knicks but none of them are better than Buddy Hield nor plus defenders. Additionally, most of them have multiple year contracts.

Two only players whom the Lakers would be seriously interested in from the Jazz and Knicks would be Bogdanovic and Reddish, two wings that would be great fits. But those two are not better than Turner and Hield. Trading for Bogdanovic and Reddish would also cause the Lakers to switch back to James and Davis at the four and five rather than starting unproven Bryant or Jones at the five. A Davis, James, Bogdan front court could work.

In the end, the Jazz and Knick trade could lead to a Lakers trade of Kendrick Nunn for Cam Reddish but it’s nothing more than posturing by the Lakers to see if they steal Turner and Hield with just Russ and one pick and one swap.

Lakers’ Best Shot at Championship Is Myles Turner and Buddy Hield Trade

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Lakers’ fans are about to find out how serious Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka are about going all-in to win a championship. Get ready because we’re at that point right now. Opportunity has knocked. Will the Lakers answer?

Per Jovan Buha of the Athletic, the Lakers understand the best deal they can get for the assets they have — Russell Westbrook and two first round draft picks — would be trading with the Pacers for Myles Turner and Buddy Hield. So far, the Pacers have asked for the Lakers’ 2027 and 2029 unprotected first round picks as the price for a Westbrook for Turner and Hield trade and the Lakers have countered with the second pick being a swap or protected.

The Lakers smartly would like to keep one of their first round picks as ammunition to sweeten a possible major midseason trade at the deadline or to combine with their 2023 first round pick in a draft day deal next summer. Besides keeping one of their picks, Pelinka is probably unwilling to make a deal that increases salaries and luxury taxes and prefers to trade only for players with expiring contracts, though that probably depends on player.

To create leverage to get the Pacers to agree to the second pick being a swap or protected, the Lakers are actively seeking a Westbrook trade with the Jazz or Spurs that includes just one pick and no salary and tax increases. That’s a smart strategy as is waiting out the Pacers at this point in time. There is little difference between an unprotected pick or a pick swap to the team receiving the swap since it is by its definition completely unprotected.

In the end, Rob Pelinka and Jeanie Buss must remember their commitment to their fans as legal guardians of the Los Angeles Lakers brand is to do whatever they can possibly do within reason to win more championships. Their commitment to LeBron James is to use all the tools in their arsenal to surround him with the best possible talent to enable him to win. As is their commitment to Darvin Ham to get him the players he needs for his system.

Nothing is as important as giving the dynamic young coach the Lakers hired to recapture their championship defense and modernize their old school offense a great roster whose skillsets and persona fit what he needs to win. The Beverley trade has given Ham the aggressive point-of-attack guard he needs to fill the role Jrue Holiday played for the Bucks. Now Pelinka needs to get Ham the modern two-way center he needs to fill Brook Lopez’s role.

Trading for Myles Turner and Buddy Hield is the Lakers’ best shot to win a championship this season. Negotiate the best possible terms but walk away from the table with the deal. Not with an empty hand and an extra pick.

Could a Pacers Trade Now Be Lakers’ Best Path To Ultimately Land Kyrie?

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When the path to acquire a coveted player is blocked, the smart strategy is often not to abandon that player as a target but to make moves to be in a better position to successfully trade for that player at the next opportunity.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ campaign to satisfy LeBron James’ wishes and land Kyrie Irving now appears to be dead as the Brooklyn Nets are expected to move forward with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving rather than trading them. The problem the Lakers are facing right now what direction should they go? Should they pursue a trade with the Indiana Pacers for Myles Turner and Buddy Hield or the Utah Jazz for Patrick Beverley and Bojan Bogdanovic.

There are two compelling reasons why the Los Angeles Lakers should trade Russell Westbrook and their 2027 and 2029 first round draft picks for a trio of Indiana Pacers players: Myles Turner, Buddy Hield, and T.J. McConnell. First, the trade would transform the Lakers from a lottery to a playoff team capable of competing for a championship. Second, the trade would give L.A. the key tradeable contracts to pursue Kyrie Irving at the deadline.

So let’s take a look at the proposed Westbrook and Horton-Tucker trades, evaluate whether the resulting roster can compete for a championship, and review how the Lakers will be better positioned to trade for Kyrie Irving.

Turning Russell Westbrook into Three Legitimate Rotation Players

The Lakers’ first step in building a roster that can compete for an NBA championship is to break Westbrook’s $47 million contract into three smaller, more easily tradeable contracts for legitimate rotation players.

That’s exactly what the above proposed trade does. It breaks Westbrook’s massive $47 million contract into Myles Turner’s $18.0 million contract, Buddy Hield’s $21.1 million contract, and T.J. McConnell’s $8.1 contract. Myles Turner becomes the first modern center in Lakers’ history and the defensive rim protector and offensive floor stretcher new head coach Darvin Ham needs to successfully run the Milwaukee Bucks’ 4-out offense

Buddy Hield immediately becomes the Lakers’ starting shooting guard, providing LeBron James and Anthony Davis with the high volume, high percentage 3-point shooter they desperately need to create spacing. McConnell gives the Lakers an accomplished veteran backup point guard who can run the offense with almost a 5:1 assist to turnover ratio and is an elite defender who‘s among the league leaders in steals and deflections.

Frankly, no other Westbrook trade option gives the Lakers three players who are as perfect fits for what the team needs as the Indiana Pacers trade. It gets the Lakers 75% of the way to building a championship roster.

Turning Talen Horton-Tucker into a 3&D Wing Defender and Scorer

The Lakers’ second step in building a roster than can compete for an NBA championship is to trade Talen Horton-Tucker and a second round pick to the New York Knicks for 3&D wing defender and scorer Cam Reddish.

Finding a bigger 3&D wing to backup James or Davis, guard bigger wing scorers like Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, and possibly close games when the Lakers play small ball was one of the Lakers’ top offseason priorities. While he’s struggled with injuries and had an offseason with the Knicks, the 22-year old Cam Reddish is potentially the perfect player to fill the Lakers’ needs at small forward. At 6′ 8,” 217 lbs, he can defend and shoot the three.

While the Lakers will start games with Turner at the five and James and Davis at the three and four, their formula for closing games in the playoffs and key regular season matchups is to play small ball with AD at the five. The Los Angeles Lakers won the 2020 NBA championship in the bubble with a small-ball-on-steroids closing lineup that boasted a front court of Markieff Morris at the three, LeBron James at the four, and Anthony Davis at the five.

Look for Cam Reddish to fill the role Markieff Morris filled for the Lakers bubble championship team in a small-ball-on-steroids lineup with Reddish at the three, James at the four, and Anthony Davis as the small ball five.

 Building a Championship Caliber Starting Lineup and Rotation

The Lakers’ offseason makeover could transform the team from a lottery loser to a legitimate championship contender with a dominant starting lineup backed by a deep, versatile, younger and more athletic bench.

Besides trading Westbrook and Horton-Tucker for Turner, Hield, McConnell, and Reddish, the Lakers also should waive Toscano-Anderson and Gabriel and promote Swider to a standard NBA contract from a two-way contract. That leaves the Lakers with a balanced 15-man roster with three point guards, shooting guards, small forwards, power forwards, and centers. The Lakers also have one opening for a two-way player next to Scotty Pippin Jr.

The Lakers’ starting fivesome of Nunn, Hield, James, Davis, and Turner should be among the best in the league. The main backups of McConnell, Reaves, Reddish, Johnson, and Bryant are all outstanding 3-point shooters. The reserves of Christie, Walker, Brown, Swider, and Jones provide Darvin Ham and his player development oriented coaching staff several talented young players who hopefully can grow and develop into contributors.

Trading Russ and THT for for four legitimate rotation players who are perfect fits for what the Lakers and their superstars need catapults the Lakers back into relevancy and the championship conversation.

Building a Portfolio of Tradeable Contracts for Midseason Trades

Unlike this offseason, when they had just three players earning more than the minimum, the Los Angeles Lakers could position themselves to have six tradeable payers at the trade deadline earning more than the minimum.

Those six tradeable players — Buddy Hield, Myles Turner, T.J. McConnell, Lonnie Walker IV, Cam Reddish, and Kendrick Nunn — represent a total of $64,961,204 of tradeable salaries ranging from $5,250,000 to $21,177,750. Each of six of these players are young or in the prime of their careers and on easily traded contracts, They can be aggregated in multiple ways to match salaries in a midseason trade for a superstar like Kyrie Irving.

Unfortunately, the Lakers will likely not have any first round draft picks available at the trade deadline unless they were able to get the Pacers to accept a pick and a pick swap rather than two picks in Westbrook trade. However, they still have the ability to include a pick swap or multiple second round picks so the Lakers are not totally toothless when it comes to draft capital. Next summer, they will also have their 2023 first rounder.

Unlike last trade deadline, the Lakers will have an impressive portfolio of six talented young players at multiple positions on reasonable contracts whose salaries can be aggregated to matchup in any kind of trade.