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It’s clear that the Los Angeles Lakers need to rebuild their roster, from star talent to end of bench role players; every area of the team needs an injection of fresh blood.
Unfortunately, the Lakers are lacking in tradeable assets, so they will need to get creative if they want to strike a significant deal. Of course, Russell Westbrook’s future will also play a role in how the purple and gold approach their team building because if they can find a willing trade partner, that could be the first domino to fall.
The issue with trading Westbrook is that no team has the cap space to absorb his $47 million contract, so the Lakers will need to take salary back to make any deal work. As such, the scope of deals that would interest the Los Angeles front office is minimal; however, there is some high-level talent the team could acquire if they choose to part ways with their superstar guard.
According to Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley, the Lakers could be enticed by a deal to swap Westbrook for Gordon Hayward, which would add some much-needed versatility on the wing.
“Hayward is such a snug basketball fit—particularly when juxtaposed against Westbrook, the square peg L.A. tried mashing into a round hole—he might be worth the risk. When healthy, Hayward does everything you would want from a third option: shoot, distribute, create for himself when needed and defend.
His days of being the best player on a good team are in the rearview, but if his body cooperates, he could be the third-best player on a contender,” Buckley wrote.
Hayward’s Health is a Concern
While Hayward’s fit from a basketball standpoint makes perfect sense, his injury history is a worrisome factor that can’t be ignored. Since breaking his leg on his Boston Celtics debut, Hayward hasn’t been able to string healthy stretches together.
Hayward has been with the Charlotte Hornets for two seasons, appearing in less than fifty games in each of them. Considering the Lakers struggled for consistency this season due to a multitude of injuries to their top-tier talent, trading away their one consistently healthy star player for another injury-prone one would be a questionable decision – regardless of the potential benefits from a fit standpoint.
Unless the Lakers add additional young talent throughout the off-season, they could find themselves with three stars that are incapable of playing more than 55 games apiece, putting them straight back into contention for the play-in tournament.
When Healthy Hayward Makes Perfect Sense
Putting his injury struggles aside, Hayward is an ideal fit for the Lakers alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Indiana native is a legitimate three-level scorer who is also reliable defending the perimeter and has enough bounce to challenge guys at the rim when he rotates over as a help defender.
Most importantly, Hayward is extremely comfortable in a point-forward role and can help ease some of the playmaking the Lakers would lose should they trade away Westbrook or if LeBron is missing due to injury or load management.
When the Hornets acquired Hayward, it was initially thought that he would be the team’s primary offensive option, but LaMelo Ball quickly became the team’s go-to on offense, and Hayward willingly took a step back. Even so, the 12-year veteran has averaged 17.6 points, 3.8 assists, and 5.2 rebounds over his 93 games for the team, converting 40.2% of his three-point shots and 46.6% from the field.
Having that sort of output from your third option is always an ideal scenario. Still, when that third option can defer to LeBron and Davis, it’s almost unfathomable how good the Lakers could be with that trio on the offensive end. If all three players can find a way to remain healthy throughout the regular season, adding Hayward into the mix could position them back atop of the Western Conference and allow them to recover from their abject displays this season quickly.
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