Getty Russell Westbrook, Los Angeles Lakers
When the Los Angeles Lakers made the decision to acquire Russell Westbrook, we all knew the move could go one of two ways.
Unfortunately for the Lakers, the trade hasn’t worked out. Westbrook was a bad fit stylistically, and his relationship with the fanbase lasted under a year before turning into mulch. Now, both Westbrook and the Lakers are stuck in a partnership that doesn’t work, and it will stay that way until they can find a willing trade partner, or Westbrook’s contract expires – whichever comes first.
Furthermore, according to Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz, the Westbrook trade is the worst move by any franchise in the last three seasons – although, in reality, it could probably make a top five for the last decade!
“When you can take some key pieces off a championship team, package them a draft pick and exchange them for a ball-dominant, non-shooting, past-his-prime point guard on the worst contract in the NBA, you’ve just got to do it.
The trade that brought Westbrook to the Lakers isn’t just the most regrettable of the past three years, but possibly the worst since the 2013 Brooklyn Nets debacle. It’s a move Los Angeles has yet to recover from, as Westbrook’s $47.1 million salary for 2022-23 is the second-highest in the NBA behind only that of Stephen Curry,” Swartz wrote on September 14.
In fairness, it’s not that Westbrook doesn’t have anything left to offer – he actually provided the Lakers with solid production, but rather that his skillset is a poor fit alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and doesn’t project to help Los Angeles in their search of another championship.
Schroder Tipped as Possible Westbrook Replacement
With Westbrook’s presence on the roster still anything but guaranteed, it’s a smart idea for the Lakers to start considering alternative guards to help them through the upcoming season. After all, it’s highly unlikely the Lakers get a player of similar talent in a return in any potential trade.
With that in mind, Bleacher Report’s Eric Pincus believes that Dennis Schroder could be the ideal replacement for Westbrook and that he would form a fearsome guard partnership with defensive-minded Patrick Beverley, while also opening up the floor for some of the Lakers slashers and interior scorers.
“Whatever went south between Schröder and the Lakers on an extension back in 2020-21 is water under the bridge. He’s a known quantity and probably the best available free agent. The Lakers don’t need him as situated, but if a Westbrook trade comes to pass that also costs the team Nunn, a Beverley and Schröder pairing is reasonable,” Pincus wrote in his September 13 article.
Re-signing free agent guard Dennis Schröder is a “legit consideration” for the Lakers, league sources say, depending on how the rest of their roster develops.
After one season as a Laker, Schröder played for Boston and Houston in 2021-22.
More NBA notes:
Marc Stein suggested something of a similar nature in the August 23 edition of his SteinLine newsletter. So, it would seem that there is a chance of Schroder landing back in Los Angeles if the front office can find a willing buyer for Westbrook and his mammoth contract.
Westbrook Willing to be Traded
Westbrook has remained silent throughout the off-season, despite his name being linked in numerous trade rumors. However, according to a report by ESPN’s Ramona Shelbourne on a recent episode of The Lowe Post Podcast, the superstar guard is willing to be traded, should the right team make an approach for him.
“Russ is very open to a trade. He hasn’t asked for a trade. I’ve been assured of that. But he’s open to that, and somebody who wants him and wants to empower him and wants him to be Russell Westbrook of old,” Shelbourne said on a recent episode of The Lowe Post podcast.
@ChaszJohnson Russell Westbrook is not stupid, he knows the Lakers wanted Kyrie Irving, but Kevin Durant’s trade demand was rejected by his boss. 😁😁😁
He will gladly leave but not giving a dime back.
Westbrook still has plenty to offer the right team, assuming they need a ball-dominant guard that sits atop of their usage chart and is their offensive focal point – which is the role he has thrived in throughout his career. However, it’s unclear how many of those teams are currently out there, and it’s fair to assume almost none of them have the cap space to make a deal work.
Things are going to get interesting between Westbrook and the Lakers in the coming months, and all we can do is sit back and watch it unfold.