The Los Angeles Lakers added Patrick Beverley to their team yesterday after trading away two of their young players in Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson. Given that the Lake show had missed some quality perimeter defense all season long, this trade certainly makes a lot of sense.
While the Beverley trade looks like a clever piece of business, the Lakers still haven’t traded away Russell Westbrook. Last season, the Lakers brought in Russ to be the third superstar on the team and help the team win. But the Lakers, who suffered through injuries, could not even make it to the playoffs. While the franchise has been tightlipped about the superstar’s future, multiple reports have indicated that Westbrook’s time in LA might be more or less over.
Brodie could have been a Utah Jazz player by now if a three-team trade would have gone through. According to the latest reports, the Lakers could have traded away Russell Westbrook and added Patrick Beverley, Jordan Clarkson, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Malik Beasley to the roster.
“The Lakers were in negotiations as a potential third team in the Mitchell to New York trade discussions with frameworks including Westbrook to Utah and several other Jazz players like Jordan Clarkson, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Malik Beasley also going to Los Angeles.”
Reported as the third team in the Donovan Mitchell trade, the Lakers would have traded away Russell Westbrook and added multiple Jazz’ role players to the roster. This certainly looks like an enticing trade for the Lakers. While they might have given up some more players in the deal, the addition of players like Bogdanovic, Clarkson, and Beasley would have added some much-needed offensive firepower to the rotation.
While they are much more dependent on the likes of LeBron James and Anthony Davis to carry the offensive load, with Clarkson, Beasley, and Bogdanovic, the Lakers would have great 3-point shooting and a reliable offensive rotation. One department the Lakers could have faltered, though, would have been the defense.
The Utah Jazz certainly saw how the lack of a solid crop of defensive players could hurt a team. While they did have Rudy Gobert, the Jazz lacked perimeter defenders and suffered massively due to the same in the postseason. It would surely have been interesting though, if the Lakers did opt for a similar move. Should the Lakers have been more patient with a potential three-team trade?
