Each trade deadline has its winners, with this year several teams in the role of good students. The Nets, Sixers, Wizards and potentially the Bucks have been bargain-hunting. But the other side of the coin involves disappointments, the regret of fans who spent the evening waiting for any movement in the ranks of their franchise. In Los Angeles, Rob Pelinka did not wake up.
Playing for the title and ruling in 9th place in the Western Conference after 56 regular games is not what we call an optimal situation. As if they walked with wet feet on cake, the Lakers are bogged down in the soft underbelly of the League. No problem, the trade deadline is coming and it will be an opportunity for Rob Pelinka’s clique to clean up the badly constructed squad. In any case, this is what we would have written if, as the General Manager Californian, our alarm clock had not rung on Thursday afternoon. The Angelinos actually made no trades. Nothing, only chi, oualou, nada. Since January 3, only Louis Labeyrie’s draft rights have arrived under the Californian sun. It’s just lunar. Only the draft rights that a guy that Vincent Collet does not establish have arrived. Even Louis Labeyrie didn’t really make the trip. On the contrary, Rajon Rondo took the direction of Cleveland to help out in the absence of Ricky Rubio. What is the project in the Lakers house? With spots occupied by Kendrick Nunn – injured until the end of March – DeAndre Jordan and Kent Bazemore, the purple franchise failed to empty any of their drawer funds. And this despite the debacle of this Wednesday against Portland, which had the effect of the drop of water. Calm ! Selon Adrian Wojnarowski, the Lakers are focused on the buy-out market. What to provoke the very hoarse laughter, very truckers, well “uncle’s joke” by Kendrick Perkins and Richard Jefferson on ESPN. The sequence is golded.
Richard Jefferson and Kendrick Perkins burst out laughing when told the Lakers made no trade deadline moves and were focusing on the buyout market ????pic.twitter.com/x2FuxAviJn
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) February 10, 2022
Hey, Enes Kanter was cut by the Celtics on Thursday, do you see it coming? The Turk signs with the Lakers, kisses the logo for his first game, then takes 46 points from Joel Embiid and 54 from Nikola Jokic in just 3 days. No, because continuing to play for the title by betting everything on the buy-out market is like cleaning a cupboard with a cotton swab. Unless good guys like Gary Harris are released from their contract, the Lakers now have less room for maneuver, based on blazes they don’t choose. To date, the main candidates for the buyout are Goran Dragic, John Wall, Eric Bledsoe, Robin Lopez, Cory Joseph, Tristan Thompson and Paul Millsap. Perfect for rejuvenating the roster. In their defense, if we believe the words of Brian Windhorst, the Californians nevertheless tried to discuss with the Rockets for a trade Russell Westbrook, Talen Horton-Tucker and a first round draft 2027, against John Wall and Christian Wood. Ambitious, surely too much. Alongside LeBron James – the fault of a bad season – the assets are not legion. As for departures, DeAndre Jordan and Kent Bazemore are very likely to be cut. But whatever happens, at all levels, there will be work this summer. Simple example but if he continues to play with the brake, as if he were under the constraint of twelve injuries, Anthony Davis will soon no longer be untouchable. To close this paper, we pose a tweet from Magic Johnson scraped last July. We know, it’s petty to bring out old analyses.
Laker Nation, the blockbuster trade that’s bringing Russell Westbrook to the @Lakers is VERY exciting and will definitely make the Lakers a championship contender next season!
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) July 30, 2021
That’s how we like our Lakers. A good dose of immobility when the barouf is total, as if the answer to the difficulties was to stay the course. Benefit of the doubt, this buy-out market may repair some shortcomings, even if the site seems too large.
