How likely is a Westbrook-Wall swap between Lakers and Rockets?
Prior to the trade deadline this season, there was chatter about the Los Angeles Lakers possibly trading Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for former All-Star guard John Wall.
But as of now, it seems like the Lakers don’t value Wall and that the Rockets don’t covet Westbrook either.
Via Lakers Daily:
“A recent report states that the Lakers’ front office doesn’t appear to “truly value” Wall while the Rockets’ front office seems to feel the same way about Westbrook.
“’But those February conversations between Houston and the Los Angeles Lakers never gained serious traction, sources told B/R,’ Jake Fischer reported. ‘The Rockets sought a future Lakers first-rounder, which was a non-starter for L.A.’s front office. It still seems unlikely that such a deal framework will ever cross the finish line.
“’From conversations with league figures familiar with those talks, neither front office appears to truly value the opposing player. And if the 33-year-old Wall picks up his $47.4 million player option for 2022-23 as expected, it could be even more challenging for Houston to shed him than for the Lakers to move Westbrook’s expiring contract.’”
This could actually be good news for the Lakers, as giving up one or two future first-round draft picks could be a bad decision for them down the road.
In addition, acquiring Wall would likely be, at best, a lateral move. As inefficient as Westbrook can be, Wall is even worse in that department.
In the 2020-21 season, the former Washington Wizards guard made just 40.4 percent of his shots from the field and shot only 31.7 percent from 3-point land.
Wall is also still making his way back from a torn Achilles he suffered a couple of years ago, while Westbrook has been something of an ironman lately.
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