Russell Westbrook creates a conundrum for Lakers: Is it best to keep him, trade him or waive him?
Los Angeles Lakers guard Russell Westbrook isn’t sure what former Lakers coach Frank Vogel’s issue with him was.
"I think it's unfortunate, to be honest, because I've never had an issue with any of my coaches before," Westbrook said Monday in a press conference. "I'm not sure what his issue was with me or I'm not sure why, but I can't really give you an answer to why we really never connected."
Knowing Vogel a bit – a guy who sat down with reporters for a slice of pizza and a beverage after his team defeated Denver in the Western Conference finals in the Orlando bubble – his issue wasn’t with Westbrook the person.
It was Westbrook the basketball player who clashed with Vogel.
Both share some of the blame.
Vogel wasn’t the one who traded for Westbrook, and it’s not Westbrook’s fault he’s not a great fit alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis at this point of his career.
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What do the Lakers do with Westbrook, who likely will exercise the $47 million player option on his contract for the 2022-23 season?
There are three solutions, each one with potential drawbacks.
Keep him
Trade him
Waive him and use the stretch provision
Let’s start with the third option. This is unlikely because it impacts three seasons of the Lakers’ salary cap. It works like this: the Lakers waive Westbrook, and his 2022-23 salary is divided three ways and applied to the Lakers’ salary cap in 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25. That means $15.6 million eats up a portion of Lakers’ cap in those three seasons for a player who isn’t on the roster. That’s problematic, limiting the Lakers’ roster flexibility beyond next season. Doable but unlikely.
Trading him isn’t easy – not with his $47 million salary for next season. That’s a hefty number for a player whose best days are behind him, is coming off a mediocre season and couldn’t help what was supposed to be title contender reach the postseason.
However, no player is untradeable no matter how onerous the contract. We’ve seen that over and over in the NBA. The Washington Wizards are just one year removed from trading Westbrook but the Wizards also found a desperate trade partner with a key player (LeBron James) pushing for the deal. The Lakers will have a more difficult time beyond the salary and Westbrook’s level of play. He’s not a great acquisition for playoff or rebuilding teams.
The Lakers also don’t have a lot of assets to offer, and their next first round pick that they can trade this offseason isn’t until 2027. And there's not a lot of teams looking to bail out one of the league's iconic franchise.
Also, while Rob Pelinka is the Lakers’ vice president of basketball operations and he took responsibility for the roster, when you talk to agents who deal with the Lakers, there is widespread believe that Kurt Rambis, the team’s director of basketball affairs, and by extension Phil Jackson, the team’s former championship coach, have significant input in personnel matters. James does as well no matter how he tried to frame it on Monday by saying, “The front office is going to do whatever it takes to help this ball club become a better ball club from top to bottom. If they ask me my opinion, I’ll give them my opinion. But at the end of the day, they’re going to make the decisions they feel is best for the franchise.”
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Keeping Westbrook is an option, too, and James said, “One thing about Russ that I love and will always love is just his competitive spirit and what he brings to the game every single night. When you’re in a profession where so many injuries happen and so many things go on, to have a guy that’s reliable and can put on a uniform every single night, that’s something I respect out of everything. I’m not going to sit here and make decisions for the front office and things of that nature. But I loved being a teammate with Russ.”
But even Westbrook in his exit interview on Monday expressed skepticism that James and Anthony Davis supported his frenetic style of play.
Those three were just 11-10 and a small argument can be made that with more time, they would have improved. And maybe they work better together with an offensive-minded coach who can find ways to complement their skillsets. Vogel was a defensive-minded coach and struggled to get the best out of Westbrook. In the Lakers’ search for a new coach, offensive ingenuity should be high on the priority list regardless if Westbrook is on the team. It will require Westbrook to tamp down a style he has played his entire career. That might not be possible in year 15.
It’s a significant offseason for the Lakers. They have to hire a new coach, re-tool the roster, talk extension with James and figure out what to do with Westbrook.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lakers have a Russell Westbrook problem and no great solutions
