Getty Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
We might be heading into the post-season, but that doesn’t stop the rumor mill from churning out trade rumors, and while the Boston Celtics are no longer the primary subject, some of their former players are.
The Los Angeles Lakers are in panic mode. After a first-round exit last season, the Lakers have failed to make it into this year’s playoffs, and are now taking stock of a failed season. As you would expect, the purple and gold are exploring avenues to add some fresh talent to their roster, while getting off of some exuberant contracts in the process.
According to Marc Stein, one of two former Celtics in Gordon Hayward and Terry Rozier could find themselves heading to Los Angeles this summer, with Russell Westbrook heading to the Charlotte Hornets.
Trading Russell Westbrook … options already on the Lakers’ board, what rival teams project, proceeding straight to waive-and-stretch … ALL covered in today’s piece:
“Gordon Hayward has two seasons left on a four-year, $120 million contract and has appeared in only 49 of Charlotte’s 79 games this season. Terry Rozier has performed well this season, with an above-average PER of 17.36, but next season is year 1 of a four-year, $97 million extension,” Stein wrote in a recent edition of his newsletter.
You might be thinking “why would Charlotte do that when they have LaMelo Ball as their starting guard?” Well, cap acrobatics can be a peculiar thing, and with how the Hornets’ finances are shaping up, the team might need to get creative if they wish to keep their star pairing of Ball and Miles Bridges intact moving forwards.
“With the Hornets facing the onrushing expense of signing Miles Bridges to a lucrative contract extension this offseason, followed by the eventual prospect of a max extension for Ball, combining one of their long-term deals with the final season on Kelly Oubre Jr.’s two-year, $24.5 million pact, as an example, could function as a workable trade framework. Any team trading for Westbrook has to send out roughly $38 million in salary,” Stein explained.
Hayward Never Worked Out in Boston
We all know this story by now. Hayward joined the Celtics at the peak of his powers and was billed as the missing piece to Boston’s championship puzzle. The Butler alum had a previous relationship with then head coach Brad Stevens, and the consensus was that Hayward would become a focal point of Boston’s offensive and defensive scheme.
Unfortunately, the basketball gods had other plans. Hayward suffered a horrific injury on the opening night of the 2017-18 season, missing the entire year as a result. Despite a further two seasons in Boston, fans never got to see the best of Hayward, as he dealt with the after-effects of his injury, and found himself behind fighting for prominence with young and rising wings Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
When Hayward initially signed his three-year $91.5 million deal with Boston, he joined the team expecting to be the second option behind Kyrie Irving. But, following a year on the sidelines, Hayward found himself settling for a role as the team’s third wheel, as Tatum had cemented himself as a future star during the Indiana native’s absence.
In three years with the team, Hayward averaged 13.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.6 assists over 125 games, where he averaged 28.9 minutes per game. However, the Hayward eventually left the Celtics for the Hornets after signing a four-year $120 million contract but has been unable to remain healthy, participating in just 93 games over two full seasons.
Hayward, 32, might be the better trade chip in terms of salary matching, but it’s unlikely the Lakers are enamored with a deal for a player who hasn’t been shown an ability to stay healthy over his last four seasons in the league. After all, an inability to stay healthy is a large part of what caused the current rosters issues in the first place.
Rozier Has Improved Since Leaving Boston
When Rozier left the Celtics, he did so in a blaze of glory, after openly criticizing the team’s front office on an episode of ESPN’S first take. Rozier felt that his “scary terry” playoff run proved he was ready to be a lead guard for the Celtics, but with Irving back healthy, the young guard had been consigned to a bench role and struggled to adapt.
Rozier ended up joining the Hornets as part of a double sign-and-trade deal that saw Kemba Walker head to Boston following Irving’s departure. And Rozier has gone from strength to strength since being given a larger role within the Hornets’ offense.
In his three seasons with the Hornets, Rozier is averaging 19.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game while shooting 43.9% from the field and 38.8% from deep. The six-foot-one guard has been a starter for his entire Hornets’ career and has even found a way to co-exist with rising star Ball over the last two years.
Rozier’s time in Charlotte may be numbered though, as his recent contract extension will limit the Hornets’ cap flexibility over the next few seasons when they will have big decisions to make on some of the team’s younger stars.
Rozier, 28, would also slide directly into the Lakers’ starting five, should the fallen giants decide to run with a trade centered around the impressive guard.