The Los Angeles Lakers’ to-do list this summer season contains figuring out what the long term holds for Russell Westbrook. Regardless of the reality that new head mentor Darvin Ham mentioned that he is aware of how he options on working with Westbrook all through the 2022-23 campaign, the polarizing place guard has viewed his identify pop up in trade rumors one particular calendar year immediately after the crew acquired him from the Washington Wizards.
In a new piece by Dave McMenamin of ESPN, we learned that the Lakers have been seeking to determine out a probable new landing place for Westbrook. Whilst McMenamin confirmed a past report from Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sporting activities that the Lakers have spoke to the Brooklyn Nets, he also discovered that a different team seen as a contender to acquire Westbrook is on the table: the Indiana Pacers.
With the Lakers engaged in trade talks with the Brooklyn Nets and the Indiana Pacers in the very last 7 days — with sources telling ESPN that each scenarios include sending Westbrook out — the positioning of James and Westbrook was notable.
Significantly was created of Westbrook’s look at the Lakers’ Summer season League activity on Friday night, as he and LeBron James sat on reverse sides of the courtroom from a person another but did not publicly interact. James has, for every stories, been adamant about his wish for the Lakers to get Kyrie Irving from the Nets, which would need sending Westbrook to Brooklyn.
As for the Pacers, their presumed deal for Westbrook would send Myles Turner and Buddy Hield — the latter of whom the crew approximately acquired in advance of pivoting to selecting up Westbrook — to Los Angeles. The catch, according to Marc Stein’s hottest newsletter, is that there is skepticism that the Lakers would be capable to meet Indiana’s inquiring price tag.
A next supply I spoke to expressed pessimism that the Lakers would have the necessary property to assemble a trade in which they receive both equally Hield and Myles Turner from Indiana. Various experiences have explained the two Pacers as key targets for L.A. if it is not able to assemble an Irving trade design that Brooklyn is well prepared to accept.
One would believe that any sort of offer would involve Westbrook and the Lakers’ two prized future to start with-spherical draft picks in 2027 and 2029, with the 9-time All-Star’s expiring deal serving extra as a way to make the salaries get the job done. There is no word on no matter whether or not Los Angeles could endeavor to sweeten the pot by like players like Talen Horton-Tucker or Kendrick Nunn.
