The Los Angeles Lakers were clearly missing something this past season. Although being devastated by injuries obviously played a role in the premature conclusion to their season, so did having the wrong personnel.
Fixing that requires giving up some players and adding different ones in their place.
The first part of that equation should be fairly easy. LA has already put one of its players on the trade block. He seems to be coming to terms with it in his own special way.
The next logical step is adding more talent.
One legitimate option? Russell Westbrook of the Washington Wizards.
This week, eagle-eyed fans noticed something on Instagram:
Naturally, Lakers fans were giddy at the prospect of Westbrook coming to town.
So how realistic is Westbrook getting acquired by the Lakers?
Well, the 32-year-old is due to make $44 million next season and has a player option for $47 million the following season. That’s a hefty amount of money to pay someone when your team has no shot of winning a championship, which is the case with the Wizards.
Last week, a report surfaced that a Westbrook-to-L.A. deal has at least been deemed viable. Whether it will actually happen or not remains to be seen.
Presumably, if a trade did occur, L.A. would receive Westbrook, whereas the Wizards would get Montrezl Harrell, Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, a 2023 second-round pick and a 2024 second-round pick.
One way or another, this shaping up to be a very interesting offseason.
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