The Los Angeles Lakers have been in search of finding valuable pieces that can make the team an instant contender for winning the NBA Championship this season. If not winning the title, the Lakers at least want to advance to the postseason.
Keeping that in mind, the Lakers have been linked to several NBA teams this season, and their primary bargaining chip remains Russell Westbrook. Although Westbrook has been playing good basketball off the bench, there are many who still do not trust Russ to keep up this form.
As a result, Russell Westbrook is once again a part of the trade rumors ahead of the NBA Trade Deadline.
Zach LaVine Could Become A Los Angeles Lakers
While the Los Angeles Lakers are seemingly desperate to find good pieces around LeBron James, they are yet to exactly find those said pieces. But they can fulfill that wish of finding the said players with the help of the Chicago Bulls.
It has been a well-known fact that the Bulls may trade one of their star players in Zach LaVine. There have been many reports that state LaVine has been linked to the Purple and Gold. With that being said, Howard Beck of Sports Illustrated recently suggested a hypothetical trade between the Lakers and the Bulls.
Via Sports Illustrated:
Zach LaVine and Goran Dragić to the Lakers, for Russell Westbrook and protected first-round picks in 2027 and ’29.
Let’s be clear: There is no single trade that will turn the Lakers into undisputed contenders. But that can’t be the standard for making a deal (or for trading those picks). The Lakers can’t keep squandering what’s left of LeBron James’s late prime. They need to at least ensure themselves a playoff berth, and give James and Anthony Davis—still one of the best tandems in the league—a chance to make a deep run. In a year with no clear favorite in the West, a James-Davis-LaVine lineup absolutely has a shot.
Chicago is going nowhere with this roster. LaVine is due $178 million over the next four seasons, through 2026–27. The Bulls gain cap flexibility by swapping LaVine for Westbrook’s expiring deal, and a couple of draft picks to rebuild. Dragić is included for cap purposes, but he’d also be a valuable playmaker off the bench for the Lakers.
Beck did explain that no single trade is potentially enough for turning the Lakers’ 2022-23 season around. But adding the likes of Zach LaVine and Goran Dragic to the roster in place of Russell Westbrook is certainly intriguing. This would at least help the team in advancing into the postseason.
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