Getty Lonzo Ball, Los Angeles Lakers
It doesn’t matter if the Los Angeles Lakers are winning games or not; it’s clear their current roster isn’t championship caliber, and as such, they will continue to be linked in trade rumors.
As such, it should come as no surprise that the Lakers were mentioned as potential trade partners with the Chicago Bulls in a January 4 article, with the proposal sending Nikola Vucevic and Lonzo Ball to the Lakers in return for Russell Westbrook. The entire trade proposal, which was postulated by NBC Sports Chicago’s Rob Schaefer, looks like this.
Lakers receive: Nikola Vučević, Lonzo Ball
Bulls receive: Russell Westbrook, Max Christie, 2027 first-round pick
The NBA trade deadline is just over a month away
To get in the spirit of the season, @rob_schaef graded 11 ambitious fake trade ideas for the Bulls
Incredibly, in his article, Schaefer quickly discredits the likelihood of the trade ever happening, as he notes that it makes little sense for either team, regardless of the storylines a Lonzo Ball return would generate.
“Trading Ball at this juncture is simply not feasible. He has not played basketball in almost a full year, does not yet have a return date in sight, and has two years and roughly $40 million remaining on his contract after this season. Especially for the luxury tax-strapped Lakers, this trade doesn’t make much sense,” Schaefer wrote.
Russell Westbrook Impresses With Defense Against Heat
On January 4, the Lakers overcome the Miami Heat, despite entering the game without LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Lonnie Walker IV. Throughout the contest, Russell Westbrook reminded everybody what he was capable of.
However, Westbrook’s biggest contribution came on the defensive end, as he impressed time and time again in keeping Miami’s stars at bay.
“I’m not worried about Russ. He’s going to be Russ and hit the game from all different angles and fill up stat sheets. He was locked in. I was pleased by what he did defensively… He defended his behind off and it’s a big reason we were able to pull this game out,” Darvin Ham said.
The Lakers have been struggling to find consistency throughout the opening months of the season. So, a victory over the Heat – who have also struggled – should serve as a significant confidence booster, especially when factoring in the amount of talent that didn’t suit up for the competition and the manner in which the Lakers won the game.
Lakers Unlikely To Trade Draft Picks
According to a report by Howard Beck on a January 3 episode of “The Crossover NBA Show with Chris Mannix and Howard Beck,” the Lakers are unlikely to agree to a trade that would see them part ways with one of their future first-round draft picks.
“They obviously are not willing to trade the picks…And I’ve heard rumblings, and they’re only rumblings, so I don’t want people to go too far with this or go crazy with the aggregation, but a couple (of) people around the league have told me in recent weeks that they believe that the front office has essentially been told not to trade the picks, that they’re guarding those,” Beck said.
NEW @TheCrossover Pod w/@HowardBeck: Interpreting LeBron’s recent comments, Minnesota’s issues, Denver’s place among conference contenders, more. Links:
While it’s clear the Lakers need to improve their roster, it’s becoming evident that the front office is focusing on future flexibility and, as such, will likely avoid making any big moves before the summer, where they can begin approaching free agents in a bid to turn around the franchises current plight.