Westbrook trade

The Los Angeles Lakers are wasting no time making changes after a disappointing first-round cameo in the playoffs.

The Lakers, Timberwolves and Jazz are finalizing a 3-team trade that could shake up the Western Conference playoff race. Minnesota is getting Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker from Utah, along with three second-round picks, it was announced Thursday. Los Angeles is also getting guard Malik Beasley and forward Jarred Vanderbilt from the Jazz, bolstering its core around LeBron James in a bid to jump-start its sputtering season. In a separate move, the Timberwolves waived Bryn Forbes to make room for their new additions. The NBA MVP never thrived with James and injury-plagued Anthony Davis for any significant stretch of time, struggling to mold his possession-heavy game into a more complementary role.

Westbrook trade

Los Angeles is also getting guard Malik Beasley and forward Jarred Vanderbilt from the Jazz, bolstering its core around LeBron James in a bid to jump-start its sputtering season. ESPN and the Athletic first reported the trade. The NBA MVP never thrived with James and injury-plagued Anthony Davis for any significant stretch of time, struggling to mold his possession-heavy game into a more complementary role. A move to the bench last fall led to minor improvements over a dismal season, but Westbrook still appeared profoundly uncomfortable with the Lakers, who are in danger of missing the playoffs for the second straight year. Westbrook averaged Several months after the Lakers infuriated a large portion of their worldwide fan base by not trading Westbrook in the summer, they swapped him for Russell, who played his first two NBA seasons with the Lakers after they chose him with the second overall pick in the draft. Russell is now being traded for the fourth time in his eight NBA seasons. Russell is averaging His style on both ends of the court also could complement James and Davis better than Westbrook, although the Lakers will have little time to figure it out. The Timberwolves courted Russell hard when he was on the market in July , when Brooklyn ultimately landed on a sign-and-trade deal that sent Kevin Durant to the Nets and shipped Russell to Golden State. The Wolves eventually acquired Russell at the deadline in February and teamed him with his draft-class pal, Karl-Anthony Towns. The Russell-Towns pairing never really took off, in part because of injuries for each player that often kept them from being on the court at the same time. The Wolves drafted Anthony Edwards with the first overall pick in , integrating another high-impact offensive player into the lineup whose value is minimized without frequent touches. The Wolves made the playoffs in , but only recently have Russell and Edwards truly clicked after coach Chris Finch made Edwards the primary ball-handler and moved Russell into an off-ball position to better maximize his shooting ability. Russell is shooting a career-best

Kuzma spent his entire career with the Lakers after being acquired by them in a draft-night trade.

The Lakers had been trying for a year to find a new home for Russell Westbrook, who was always the square-peg third star who never fit in next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis something seemingly everyone but the Lakers front office thought was obvious back before they ever traded for Russ. The Lakers and Jazz roped in a Timberwolves team needing a shakeup to make it a three-way deal that alters the landscape in the Western Conference. The Lakers got better in this trade, although they may want to manage expectations. But Los Angeles does improve. If LeBron and Davis are healthy, nobody wants to see this team in the playoffs. The Lakers get an upgrade at the point guard spot. That said, while his raw numbers look good, Russell has not passed the eye test this season, he has disrupted the Minnesota offense chasing stats in a contract year.

The Los Angeles Lakers are wasting no time making changes after a disappointing first-round cameo in the playoffs. Thank you! Thank you DC! You welcomed my family and I with open arms from day one. Everyone from the front office, to the training staff, the coaches, my teammates, and the fans. This is the second time in three years that the Lakers have made a significant offseason trade.

Westbrook trade

The Lakers, Timberwolves and Jazz are finalizing a 3-team trade that could shake up the Western Conference playoff race. Minnesota is getting Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker from Utah, along with three second-round picks, it was announced Thursday. Los Angeles is also getting guard Malik Beasley and forward Jarred Vanderbilt from the Jazz, bolstering its core around LeBron James in a bid to jump-start its sputtering season.

Portswiger

Washington Commanders. The Lakers were backed into a corner, wielding limited assets heading into the deadline but might have managed to maximize their return. The reason, allegedly, was James Harden. Going after Westbrook represented—and still represents—both the height and stupidity of this transition. Facebook Twitter Email. Louis Cardinals. Tucker and Danuel House Jr. More importantly, the Bulls ponied up a star cost to get him. Clippers, for a package built around expiring role-player contracts, two firsts, one swap, two seconds and, of course, the promise of mega cap space Cling to these caveats all you want. But touting one undefined end destination over another rings hollow when you're operating on the dominant-yet-fickle timeline of Joel Embiid.

Westbrook was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Jazz as part of a three-team deal ahead of the trade deadline earlier this month. In 52 games for the Lakers this season, the majority of them off the bench, Westbrook averaged But while his counting stats were still solid, his defense, inefficient shooting

When you include Walker Kessler, they gave up the equivalent of five first-round picks and one first-round swap, not to mention three useful players in Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley and Patrick Beverley. From NBA. The Wolves eventually acquired Russell at the deadline in Feb. Conley can set up Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert, and once he gets healthy Karl-Anthony Towns, getting them the rock in good spots on the floor, and is not looking for his own shot ala Russell. Premier League. But it's not a be-all when the Kings still ended up with two All-NBAers anyway, and when the Pacers have yet to parlay their window with Hali into anything more substantive than much deserved pomp and promise. Tucker and Danuel House Jr. The Lakers had been trying for a year to find a new home for Russell Westbrook, who was always the square-peg third star who never fit in next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis something seemingly everyone but the Lakers front office thought was obvious back before they ever traded for Russ. Does he even want to be the de facto floor general anymore?! The Lakers got better in this trade, although they may want to manage expectations. Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. This exercise will spotlight the most notable swings and misses in recent memory.