The first thing the Lakers needed to take care of ahead of next season is already done. With Darvin Ham on board, Los Angeles can now move on to the next stage and decide how to improve its roster.
While the Purple and Gold thought they had assembled a title-contending team last summer, the 2021-22 NBA season gave them a hard reality check. Their offseason moves didn’t pay off as expected, especially the Russell Westbrook trade.
Ham, however, seems to be a huge admirer of Brodie, or at least that’s what he suggested thus far. But trade rumors involving Westbrook continue to emerge, and another team joined the list of his possible landing spots.
Rumor: Russell Westbrook could go back to Oklahoma City
(Via Heavy.com)
“The exec — who works for a Western Conference team — recently told Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney that OKC is the ideal landing spot for Westbrook, who failed to make an impact in La La Land this past season.
‘The most likely scenario is still Russ ending up back in Oklahoma City, they can absorb him into cap space, give him a year where he can get back to being himself and grab a couple of picks in the process,’the exec said.
It might not be the best thing as far as development goes, but it would be good for the fan base and they’d come away with some assets for it. It’s the dream scenario for Russ and for the Lakers, really, too, if they get another team to go along with it and come away with a player or two who actually fits.”
A return to Oklahoma City would certainly please Thunder fans, though it could be a step back for Westbrook. He has great memories from his time with them, butnow they look like a complete different team. But to be fair, Brodie doesn’t come from a great year either. For now, he’s still a Laker… Only time will tell for how long.