Lakers don’t want to use their assets to trade Russell Westbrook

The Los Angeles Lakers made their first big move of the NBA offseason, announcing that Milwaukee Bucks assistant head coach Darvin Ham will take over as head coach.

Ham has performed well in his interviews and will hopefully breathe some life into a Lakers franchise that needs some positive developments.

With a head coach now in place, the focus will turn to their roster. They also need a lot of work there, as they missed the playoffs this season, not even qualifying for the NBA Play-In tournament.

The only move people expect the team to make is point guard Russell Westbrook. Rob Pelinka took a chance on acquiring him last year from the Washington Wizards, but the deal fell through as Westbrook never found a place on the team.

LATEST NBA NEWS AND TRADE RUMOURS: 3 new trade ideas involving Russell Westbrook of the Los Angeles Lakers

Hitting the reset button on this deal and trading it would apparently be better for both parties. However, according to Marc Stein on his substackthe odds of Russell Westbrook staying with the Los Angeles Lakers are increasing.

“The Lakers are once again dismissing the doubters and insisting to everyone who listens that they would rather keep Russell Westbrook on the roster for next season than give up additional assets to convince someone to trade for him. The Lakers are also reportedly adamant they won’t release the former MVP and eat up his $47.1 million player option for next season after Westbrook picks him up.

Anyone who has been linked to Westbrook as a potential trade destination is said to have requested draft compensation with him. The Lakers’ 2027 first-round pick could do the trick to seal a deal, but that’s not a path the team is willing to take just yet.

LATEST NBA NEWS AND TRADE RUMOURS: 3 new trade ideas involving Russell Westbrook of the Los Angeles Lakers

This could very well be a posturing from Los Angeles. They must generate interest in improving Westbrook’s tank stock. Teams know they want and almost need to get away from him, so they’ll hold as many assets as possible to include.

However, the longer Russell Westbrook is held back, the better his stock will improve. As an expiring deal, it offers league organizations a chance to reset their salary cap, sending in long-term deals. But, in this scenario, it would be the Los Angeles Lakers who would likely acquire some compensation draft as part of the deal, not tie it to Westbrook.

LATEST NBA NEWS AND TRADE RUMOURS: 3 new trade ideas involving Russell Westbrook of the Los Angeles Lakers

This will be a situation to watch in the coming weeks as there will be a lot more rumors about what might happen with the former MVP this offseason.