After an underwhelming 2020-21 NBA season, the Los Angeles Lakers were on a hiring spree in the offseason. They were linked with several big names and shook the roster quite a bit. One of those players was Sacramento Kings star Buddy Hield.
Hield has made a name for himself as one of the best shooters in the league over the course of his career. Unfortunately, his move to the purple and gold couldn’t be finalized due to the organization trading for Russell Westbrook.
In hindsight, the move worked out well for the franchise as Westbrook is slowly but surely adjusting to his new team. On the other hand, Hield and co. are still in the 11th spot in the Western Conference.
Recently, the two sides faced off against each other, and the Lakers were victorious. While it was a good win for the team, something else caught the eye of NBA fans. Before the fixture began, Hield was seen shaking hands with Lakers president Jeanie Buss.
Although it doesn’t seem much more than a casual greeting from either end, many believed it was a sign that the Lakers might try to trade for Hield once again. Here are some of the best fan reactions to the Instagram post:
original.ashton.l: “How could they even afford him are they pulling money from an invisible salary they don’t got.”
chris_mart30: “Fineeeeeeee them for tamperinggggg.”
bigdawg_martin23: “Buddy for talen straight up buddy is almost 30 and talen is a future sixth man of the year canidate but make the trade!!!!”
yogihaze: “Should’ve done that deal instead of chasing Westbrook.”
rdote24: “Trade for Westbrick and a printer! .”
_huntermolitor_: “Whose contract do they have to offer. 8f they give Westbrook they would need like 20 million more in filler. And the kings wouldn’t want westbrook anyway they already have like 4 or 5 guards.”
seby_2706: “Bro people actually think this is tampering .”
bones71199: “Tampering? And I’m a lakers fan . Looks even more sus he put his shirt over his mouth. Well other than maybe Covid stuff. But he could also be hitting her up .”
jskuxx23: “That’s a fine for tampering .”
isohoops.info: “Thats a good pick up but you dont think it was possible that they havin a regular convo.”
kholman32: “This is why they cover their mouths when they talk, literally can’t have a conversation with anyone without the media jumping on it.”
As we pointed out earlier, the video was just a casual conversation between the two. Many fans agree with us on that front. On the other hand, there were a few who joked about the two getting fined for tampering.
Whatever be the case, the Lakers will most likely not trade Russ now. Even NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins backtracked on his comments and believes Westbrook will be the solution for the Lakers. Is he right? We will find out when the season is over.
