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The Los Angeles Lakers made their first deal of what could be several trades ahead of the NBA’s February 10 deadline by moving on from veteran Rajon Rondo. There continues to be speculation that another Lakers point guard could be on the move if general manager Rob Pelinka can find a trade partner. Hoops Hype’s Yossi Gozlan sees the Celtics as a potential landing spot for Russell Westbrook with five-time All-Star Al Horford being the centerpiece of the deal.
“For example, the Boston Celtics are a team that could use a more traditional point guard, and Westbrook theoretically could be a decent fit there since their best lineup would have three good shooters surrounding him,” Gozlan detailed. “A package of Al Horford ($27 million), Josh Richardson ($11.6 million), and Juancho Hernangomez ($7 million) combine for nearly identical salaries for Westbrook, which is important for both teams due to their current luxury tax situations.”
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Westbrook’s $47 Million Salary for the 2022-23 Season Makes Him Challenging to Trade
Westbrook’s $47 million salary for next season makes moving him challenging and could be a dealbreaker for Boston. Gozlan believes the Celtics likely would prefer to acquire younger players over Westbrook.
“However, the Celtics seem to be positioning themselves for a trade for a younger All-Star down the line,” Gozlan added. “All three of those players mentioned earlier make a diverse amount of mid-sized salaries that are valuable for salary matching combinations. If they trade all of them for Westbrook, they’re taking in $44 million this year, and $47 million next year that is way harder to move than those several smaller salaries.
“Also, the Celtics are already projected to be over the luxury tax next season but can get under if they waive the non-guaranteed contracts of Horford ($14.5 million guaranteed) and Hernangomez. Having Westbrook’s $47 million on their books next year instead would complicate their luxury tax issues.”
Would Horford Help the Lakers?
Even if the Celtics were interested in Westbrook, does a trade for Horford and company give the Lakers an improved roster? Horford’s presence could allow Anthony Davis to slide back to his preferred position of power forward when he returns and likely would mean less minutes at center for James.
Horford is averaging 11.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.5 blocks in 27 starts this season with the Celtics. Richardson could give the Lakers a bit more shooting off the bench as the guard is averaging 38.6% from long range to go with his 10.8 points per game. Hernangomez has played sparingly for the Celtics averaging just 5.5 minutes in 17 appearances this season.
The Lakers Are Being Pressed to Trade Westbrook
Plenty of analysts are urging the Lakers to trade Westbrook as the team attempts to turn around their season. The question is whether the Lakers can find a trade partner for Westbrook. The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor is among those pressing the Lakers to move on from Westbrook before the trade deadline.
“The Lakers had the right idea adding Westbrook,” O’Connor noted on December 27. “He can alleviate LeBron’s workload and give him time to rest before a possible playoff run. Westbrook should be a transition track star, run pick-and-rolls and isolations when he’s hot or has a good matchup, and certainly must run the show when LeBron is off the floor. But when sharing the floor with LeBron, Westbrook should embrace a supercharged version of the role Bruce Brown does for the Nets, or Gary Payton II has for the Warriors.
“…Unless Russ shows signs of changing, the Lakers need to at least consider moving him. Not that there’d be much interest. Few teams need a point guard, never mind a past-his-prime 33-year-old making $44 million with a player option for $47 million next season.”
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