Here’s how Russell Westbrook could be key to a Donovan Mitchell-Knicks trade
Why would the Lakers do this?
The clock is ticking for the Lakers to utilize whatever is left of LeBron James’ prime. Objectively, Anthony Davis does not seem to be one that can carry a team to a title alone. So from now until the end of LeBron’s career, they must put together the best squad to have another shot at a title.
LA seems to rate Talen Horton-Tucker high as they chose to keep him over Alex Caruso, but even when given the opportunity last year, he averaged 10/3.2/2.7 and shot 41.6% from the field and 26.9% from three. This is not the sort of talent you should put around LeBron. And after this past year, I don’t think they will have too big of a problem including THT in the right trade.
The Lakers tried the Westbrook experiment last year and it failed miserably. Based on Westbrook’s exit interview, he hardly thought he had anything to do with their lack of success. Despite reports of the three stars’ commitment to the team, their new head coach Darvin Ham doesn’t seem convinced.
Los Angeles Lakers’ Big 3 of LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook huddled for a phone conversation to confirm their commitment to each other through the uncertainty, league sources told @YahooSports: https://t.co/7a4Ykdgo6V
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) July 18, 2022
While Anthony Davis has said numerous times that he prefers to play the four, he has shown time and time again that he is the most effective at the five.
Julius Randle would add another dimension to the offense and he is still a willing perimeter shooter. If Randle can play a role similar to what he played in New Orleans, it would be a great addition for the Lakers. Randle also would get to return to the team that drafted him and he would likely not oppose playing the second or third fiddle to generational players like LeBron and AD.
Derrick Rose would add another attacking option from the perimeter and he would be an improvement over Westbrook based on his sheer ability to finish in the paint. LA would sacrifice nothing from this trade besides a future first-round pick. But with LeBron at the helm, I highly doubt he cares that much about the Lakers’ first-round pick in 2027.
In the current market, trading for a star player is very costly. You can say that the Rudy Gobert trade really altered the expected value one may expect from trading a star (on a multi-year contract).
The Lakers should be trying everything to get their team back in title contention. The Jazz should be tanking from day one to get Victor Wembanyama on their team. The Knicks should be trying their absolute best to get Donovan Mitchell to help get the team back in the playoffs. This very trade could be the one to satisfy all three teams.
