Is Keeping Russell Westbrook a smart decision by the Lakers Front office?
You would think the big question being asked amongst Lakers fans is “Should Russell Westbrook be traded?” Well, after an extremely rough homecoming for Westbrook this past season in which he was nowhere near the same player we’re used to seeing, the question is already answered with many Lakers fans posting their trade scenarios and packages the Lakers can acquire for Westbrook on social media.
A recent report by Marc Stein stated “The Lakers plan to keep Russell Westbrook. LA refuses to give up “additional assets” to send him out.” Now, I can see why Lakers fans would be angry with this recent report and the Lakers front office after an already frustrating 2021-22 season, but Lakers fans must also remember how early it is in the off-season still. It wouldn’t make sense for the Lakers from a leverage standpoint to leak that they are trying very hard to find a trade partner for Westbrook.
Although, keeping Russell Westbrook for next season can be another wasted year in Los Angeles, unless newly hired Lakers Head Coach Darvin Ham can somehow, someway, find a better way to utilize Westbrook than former Head Coach Frank Vogel ever could.
If you’re trying to look on the bright side of keeping Westbrook though, it’s important to point out that he would be on the final year of his contract which would free up a lot of cap space for the 2023 off-season in which LeBron James would be 38 years old. It can also prevent the Lakers from getting fleeced by a trade scenario that would cause them to take on a few bad contracts which can hurt them in the long run, but Jason Timpf of The Volume says it best:
As I stated above, LeBron James isn’t getting any younger even though his play says otherwise. It would not be smart for the Lakers to go into next season with the same questions they’re going into this off-season with in regards to how Westbrook fits alongside LeBron, Anthony Davis, and the rest of the roster.
If they are truly unwilling to give up any assets to begin the construction of a championship caliber roster, then it’s very difficult to see just how well they’ll compete with an already loaded Western Conference going into next season especially if LeBron and Davis are going to be in and out of the lineup for what would be the third straight season. For now, let’s just see how this off-season plays out and whether the Lakers front office is serious or not. With the Boston Celtics four wins away from their 18th title in franchise history after the Lakers just tied them at 17 a year and half ago, maybe it’ll light a spark under them this summer.
