Since the start of the 2021-22 NBA season, rumors have been swirling around veteran point guard Russell Westbrook and his future with the Los Angeles Lakers. With his inconsistent performance and struggle to make himself fit with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, there are growing speculations that the Lakers may explore moving Westbrook again before the 2022 NBA trade deadline.
However, the Lakers aren’t expected to trade Westbrook just for the sake of getting him out of Los Angeles. If they decide to move him, it would likely be in a deal that would strengthen their chances of reclaiming their throne this season.
Lakers Could Trade Russell Westbrook For Ben Simmons
One of the potential trade targets for the Lakers in the deal involving Westbrook is All-Star point guard Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers. Though they are yet to make Westbrook officially available on the trading block, the Lakers are already starting to be linked to Simmons, who has been finding his way out of the City of Brotherly Love since the 2021 NBA offseason. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Lakers are one of the seven NBA teams that have expressed a strong interest in acquiring Simmons before the 2022 NBA trade deadline.
Sixers Daryl Morey 'Still Likes' Russell Westbrook
The success of the potential Simmons-to-Lakers blockbuster depends on whether the Sixers view Westbrook as an All-Star. However, according to an anonymous general manager who spoke to Heavy.com, the man who’s calling the shots in Philadelphia, Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey, "still likes" Westbrook.
“I think Morey still likes Westbrook and there could be a deal in there,” the anonymous general manager said. “I think you would need a third team to make the money work because the Lakers do not have a lot of middle-tier guys or draft picks they can add to get the Sixers’ interest."
Russell Westbrook-Daryl Morey Relationship
The connection between Westbrook and Morey would likely play a major role in the potential Lakers-Sixers blockbuster involving Simmons. Westbrook and Morey worked together on the Houston Rockets for one year. Morey was the team’s general manager when the Rockets executed a trade that sent Chris Paul to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Westbrook.
The pairing of Westbrook and James Harden may not have produced an NBA championship title for the Rockets, but it still gave Morey a glimpse of how good a player "The Brodie" is.
Russell Westbrook's On-Court Impact For Sixers
For the Sixers, swapping Simmons for Westbrook is about trading a disgruntled star who is on indefinite leave for a player who could immediately contribute on the court. There will still be questions regarding Westbrook’s fit with Joel Embiid but if they could mesh well on the court, it would undoubtedly increase the Sixers’ chances of fully dominating the Eastern Conference and capturing the Larry O’Brien Trophy this season.
Westbrook would give the Sixers another offensive threat, a great rebounder, a decent playmaker, and a floor-spacer. This season, he’s averaging 19.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, 8.4 assists, and 1.2 steals while shooting 45.1 percent from the field and 32.4 percent from beyond the arc, per ESPN.
]]>The Inquisitr
