Some rumors take on a life of their own even if there isn’t much meat to them. The Russell Westbrook/Lakers speculation would qualify as this type of rumor. With Westbrook’s pending free agency next summer, the Lakers working the CBA to create max cap space next summer while also maintaining flexibility right now, Kevin Durant’s recent departure, and Westbrook being from LA, there were a lot of dots being connected even if there were never any reports of discussions between the Lakers and Thunder.
Those rumors, though, can now be put to rest as Westbrook is on the verge of signing an extension to stay in OKC for at least the next two seasons and maybe the next three:
Sources: Russell Westbrook is flying to Oklahoma City on Thursday morning, planning to sign a three-year, $85M-plus contract renegotiation.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) August 4, 2016
For you CBA wonks, Westbrook is taking advantage of the clause in the CBA which allows for a team with cap space to give a player a raise and then use that increased salary as the base amount for an extension. In other words, Westbrook is getting a fat increase in salary now with the trade off being he delays any free agency decision by at least another season — in this case, Westbrook will have a player option which, if exercised, would make him a free agent again in the summer of 2018.
So, Westbrook is off the market. Well, for now at least. This move won’t completely silence all speculation on Westbrook’s future in OKC, but it should quiet it for now. If the team underperforms in the first half of the season, those talks can always crop back up, but for now — and theoretically for the next couple of seasons — Westbrook is a member of the Thunder.
In this space, that means no more talk of him being traded to the Lakers; of him no longer being a free agent target next summer. The latter is a bit of a blow to the Lakers, but also gives them bit more of a clearer perspective of their short term options and in planning for free agency next summer. It means they can more fully commit to their young players (if they weren’t already — which I think they were anyway) and start to build the culture and environment which helps accelerate the growth of their core.
Whatever your thoughts on Westbrook were/are, this is a good thing for the Lakers. Regardless of how much they have improved in the past several months, they were not one player away from being a team that could make a deep playoff run. Getting a top 5 player in his prime is never a bad thing, but getting him by gutting the roster of its young talent was never going to be a good idea. The Lakers no longer have to worry about such things and can now instead focus on internal improvement.
There are no shortcuts to building a winner. My guess is that the Lakers understand that. But even if they didn’t, the guy who would most represent that type of gamble is no longer available. Which is probably for the best for everyone.
new rr says
I expect that OKC will make a big push for Blake Griffin next summer if Griffin uses his ETO.
A Horse With No Name says
Said the blogger who connected dots whilst doffing a tin foil fedora!
Darius Soriano says
A Horse With No Name Don’t forget the conspiracy glasses. I was also wearing conspiracy glasses.
HaroldSeokohYun says
The realist in me is glad for this, while the romantic in me died a bit more today.
FredP says
This is great news for the youth movement and makes it easier to keep building a new culture. Quality free agents will come when the time is right.
Altemawa says
i agree DS, we’re too far away from playoffs/contention, we’re ranked too low and with that we can still keep our pick next year. 🙂
but, i am optimistic that we’re on the right track.
and this RW signing will not stop OKC for shopping RW, he’s on a longer term, but still the possibiliy of him playing elsewhere as early as next season is still high…
just play the Lakers way, we will be fine.
wwlofficial says
new rr I kinda expect Blake Griffin to be traded away in fear of this idea.
nupe4life1996 says
Don’t care what westbrook does….the goal is to let the young guys play and have jim buss resign and maybe keep the next pick….oh and get rid off swaggy p
wwlofficial says
Sometimes its hard to separate the basketball fan in me and the Laker fan in me. Sometimes those 2 things are exactly the same… but in times when they’re not, I am glad that I can manage to find solace that I can be twice happy instead of never happy.
Today, I am glad that Westbrook has remained in OKC. Biggest reason is I want to see him go Iverson on everyone like 32-9-9 or 26-11-11… something that’s never been seen in the modern era of basketball. I’d like to tell everyone that apart from the Lakers, watching OKC this season will be a lot of fun for me because I love ballhogs who will their teams to win against all odds.
At the same time, the Laker fan in me rejoices. We were saving cap space for something else! And that actually excites me. Now that nobody worthwhile signing is worth giving more than the minimum anymore, I would like to think that the Lakers are prepping to just close out free agency season and just head to training camp.
Brandon Ingram will be a Laker after all, now I have to start getting used to that. Don’t ask.
There is still this tiny matter of Nick Young. Its not wise to stretch/waive him anymore because we’re not using cap to sign anyone. The next step therefore is either to waive him straight up (and take a 5.6M hit next year) or ask him to stay away from the team and accept a buyout that will significantly reduce his salary next year (in exchange for freedom this year).
There is also a possibility for us to accept a bigger-salaried guy in the trade in lieu of Young, someone like Tyreke Evans that makes more money this year but none next year. Its also a free look of his possible fit with us. Let me clarify, its not Tyreke Evans I’m after, its just someone like him whose salary is 10-11M but expiring.
I pose a question to fellow Laker fans, would you pay Julius Randle 15M per season if he is already what he is plus a little better?
LT Mitchell says
Landing Westbrook comes with the added benefit of potentially landing another superstar next summer. It was doom and gloom for OKC fans ever since Durant left with the fear of Westbrook leaving. Now, the future of their team looks bright again. Things can change quickly in the NBA.
The Lakers did not just lose out on Westbrook with this news, they potentially lost out on two superstars, possibly Blake as rr mentioned. Oh well, I guess it’s back to the lottery again.
blkmacster says
nupe4life1996
+1
We need to get use to doing things the right way.
M~
rafisher1 says
First – Yea!Now the Lakers can concentrate on developing
their youth like Walton said they would.This Westbrook business was a distraction.
Second – Once the kids develop to where they are, “one
player away from being a team that could make a deep playoff run,” who is to
say that position will be the PG?
We really don’t know what we have yet in our young
group.We see a lot of potential, but
time and experience need to be had.
Will Russell become the star PG he could be?
Will the Russell/Clarkson backcourt click and learn defense?
Will Ingram become the Star SF he could be?
Will Anthony Brown, the best perimeter defender on the team,
get his shot back?
Will Randle get a mid-range shot at all and learn to use his
right hand?
What else does Nance Jr have to show us?
Can Zubac live his dream and develop to the level of the
other great Lakers Centers?
Will Black continue to develop and then where does he fit in
the mix?
Looking at the bench, if those listed above come along, then
who will be the young 2nd unit PG & SG backcourt of the future?
So – just where does that “one player away” fit?
_ Robert _ says
I was never in favor of gutting the team to get Westbrook. Keeping most of our youngsters and somehow crafting a trade for him would have been nice, but was always a pipedream for obvious reasons. What I thought most of us wanted was for Westbrook to play out this final year in OKC and then we would possibly go after him in FA next year. Right?
So that being the case, why would Westbrook re-upping in OKC be a good thing? I see it as one less possible deal we can make in the future (or dramatically reduced odds of such a deal anyway). As Darius says above: “The latter is a bit of a blow to the Lakers.” So – why is this a good thing? Nobody was forcing us to trade for him. Not sure why significantly reducing/delaying our ability to possibly sign for him as a FA is a good thing. We should always be rooting for players to come on the market and become available. It creates more “supply”.
HamSinkie says
FredP lakers won’t have the cap flexibility to sign those quality free agents
MT87 says
_ Robert _ Its a good thing if you think the young core will realize significant growth over the next couple years. Selling them today would be selling low in my opinion. Not being able to go after Westbrook next year is much less of a blow if Dlo starts to look the part of a future all-star. Especially since there was never a guarantee Westbrook would be coming here in any case.
I’m not sure how Westbrook becoming available a little later actually hurts us very much.
HamSinkie says
MT87 _ Robert _ “I’m not sure how Westbrook becoming available a little later actually hurts us very much. ” Lakers would have had the cap flexibility to sign him in 2017. They will have little cap flexibility in 2018 (Randle is a free agent)
Vasheed says
wwlofficial
I think you describe why I’m not upset to miss out on Westbrook. I want to the ball move around. Watching injury prone Westbrook crash into guys driving to the hoop would probably give me heartburn. I think the Lakers should keep an open mind if a superstar is offered in a trade but I say that with a lot of caveats.
I really think Young needs to go one way or another. I’d be surprised to see another team at this point trade an expiring 10M player for Young straight up. Just not a huge reason to do so this late into free agency. I would expect a package deal.
I would have told you signing Randle for 15M at roughly his current level of play would be ridiculous going into this summer. Then we signed Mozgov. Randle at 15M now seems eminently reasonable……
MT87 says
HamSinkie MT87 _ Robert _ There wasn’t really any reason to believe that we could sign him in 2017. As we’ve learned over the last several years just having cap space doesn’t mean any superstars are going to want to jump into it. The 2017 free-agent class is still strong. If we are attractive to major free agents at that point than we will get one. If the team doesn’t show major growth than all that cap space won’t matter.
LordMo says
Smart move by his peeps. He will still be squarely in his prime after this contract expires. This gives the Lakers another asset (2017 draft) and time to develop their young core. If he comes a few years from now then “Katie bar the door!”
It would have only made sense to get him now if get an extension and another proven scorer to come along like the signing of DeRozan who looks all world right now. So still a possibility because if I’m the Lakers I want an extension in place before any trade. But a third team is needed to get anything done.
HamSinkie says
MT87 HamSinkie _ Robert _ If you don’t think the Lakers had a chance to sign LA guy RW than why would you think the Lakers have a chance at the other max-worthy free agents?
Still R says
wwlofficial Yes I’d say he’s worth 15 mil given the Lakers relative paucity of talent (let’s be realistic); the fact the Lakers are Kryptonite to top tier FAs/reasonable alternatives; the insane compensation people who can play some are commanding; the fact he’s a double-double machine, and probably other factors I’m not even considering at the moment.
KevTheBold says
First of all, we don’t know if the Lakers were ever considering trading for Westbrook, and I for one would hope that in there somewhere, there is some semblance of foresight, which would not allow the nuclear button to be pushed, which by the way would detonate from the inside out, just to obtain one player who just so happens to have that sign of superstar on a stringed tag around his neck.
I think this label of ‘Superstar’ blinds some people to the reality of these all too human beings.
For example: how many considered the personality quirks of Westbrook which drove Durant away, or his injuries and playing style which caused them? Or the fact that even with Durant, OKC still could get the job done?
Now some frigidity near sighted fan here is also mentioning Griffin, yet like with Westbrook, turns a blind eye to his warts.
Like for example; the many missed games due to character issues that demonstrate an unstable violent personality resulting in broken hand, and his quad injury from an uncommon form of – Chronic Tendinitis -? Why do you think the Clippers were reportedly considering trading him?
What makes these self destructive wishes all the more frustrating, if not simply silly, is the fact that our suffering through hell for 3 years paid off and now, for the first time in decades, we have a core of the most amazing and talented young men, all of good character, excellent work habits who are willing to learn, who are now coached by a smart and encouraging young coach.
Why trade away the hard earned gems from those miserable three years in return for what ? A few additional games won? It’s like putting a Bentley hood ornament on a Prius.
Even if we stay the course, of course, there never are guarantees, yet one type of plan is an Investment, that comes from doing the right thing today, with your eyes on the future, and is much more rewarding than the other type which is like a Vegas Gamble from desperate addicted soul, that just rolled the dice with his family house as collateral, knowing that even if he wins, it won’t be the jackpot, only enough to get him to the next bet.
_ Robert _ says
Ham: You make a good point. Eventually we need to be attractive to FAs, at a point when we have available cash. So if not next year – then when?
MT87: “I’m not sure how Westbrook becoming available a little later actually hurts us very much.” Well it may not – but why is this a good thing? It is like we don’t trust ourselves and people are relieved that RW is off the market, because it takes away the possibility that we could have done something wrong.
A Horse With No Name says
LT Mitchell rr’s remarks about Griffin had nothing to do with the possibility of the lakers losing the chance to sign him in free agency–that’s your comment. If your pining for Blake Griffin, a guy whose recovery from the torn quad is still problematic, and a guy who is showing the unmistakable signs of decline, well then, yeah . . .
MT87 says
HamSinkie MT87 _ Robert _ Each free agent has their own goals. What Westbrook chooses to do is not binding on anybody but Westbrook.
A Horse With No Name says
wwlofficial
“Brandon Ingram will be a laker after all, now I have to start getting used to that. Don’t ask.”
First off, he was never in danger of being traded away for Westbrook–as I assured you. And don’t worry, I won’t ask–I know better.
MT87 says
_ Robert _ “it takes away the possibility that we could have done something wrong.” In my opinion this is a good thing. I’m with Darius on the idea that gutting the roster in a trade for Westbrook would be a bad idea. There is no reason to believe it would work out any differently for us than when Melo forced his way to New York.
Either a star free agent will want to take our money next year or they won’t. The young guys need to look competitive for this team to be appealing to anyone. Its a seller’s market and the Lakers simply don’t have very much control over what moves other people make.
Everybody has cap space. Everybody wants a star player and there aren’t enough to go around. It seems highly unlikely to me that Westbrook was gonna be our guy. I just don’t see any reason to believe that he was on the verge of coming here. I will not mourn the passing of this pipe dream.
MT87 says
LT Mitchell If we had traded for westbrook and his max salary, would we even have had cap space next year for another max contract?
fern16 says
And still make less money than Conley. Smh. Im glad all this nonsense is finally behind us…
MT87 says
HamSinkie FredP That’s a problem for another day. Westbrook certainly wasn’t going to help our cap flexibility.
HamSinkie says
MT87 RW grew up near LA, went to UCLA and is obviously in the fashion business. And RW is a guy who clearly like to take on a challenge so he wouldn’t be scared of any pressure to live up to Kobe’s legacy. If there was one superstar who would go the Lakers it would be him. Is Griffin going to take less money to go to a worse team? If he likes LA so much he’ll just stay with LAC. If Griffin is going to take less he’ll go to OKC/Boston/East where he has a chance to win. Tell me which top free agents of the 2017 class had more incentive to go LA than RW did.
HamSinkie says
MT87 Lakers have a one year window of cap flexibility. Ya use it or lose it. Westbrook is a top 5 player. Worth every penny he’ll get.
LT Mitchell says
The jury is still out on Blake’s quad recovery as well as his decline, but by next summer, the picture should be clearer. My point is that in today’s NBA, superstars have become magnets to attract other superstars. I think with Westbrook on board, the odds of adding another superstar like Blake go up exponentially. Without a Westbrook caliber player on the Lakers, next summer’s attempts to sign an elite free agent will likely be similar to what happened this summer.
LT Mitchell says
It would depend on what the Lakers gave up. But you are right, it would take some creativity by Mitch to create that cap space, particularly with the flexibility that was lost with the Deng/Mosgov contracts.
MT87 says
HamSinkie MT87 I just don’t find the thinking regarding why Westbrook was our best bet to be persuasive and I’m content to let the season play out before I try to pretend to know what free agents are going to be thinking in 2017. As I’ve already written, our future is in the hands of the young core. Winning solves a lot of problems.
HamSinkie says
MT87 The odds were low in getting him to sign. But not as low as the odds of Blake/Hayward/etc signing. Winning ain’t comin anytime soon (unless you think winning 20 to 30 games is enough)
MT87 says
LT Mitchell On the other hand, if one of the core looks like a star by next summer we could be firmly in the FA conversation. The wait for real basketball is un-fricken-bearable
MT87 says
HamSinkie MT87 I don’t disagree.
Alexander_ says
wwlofficial Randle will start at the 4 over a guy we just paid $18m per. And that’s without getting a little bit better. So yes, if HBarnes is a max player, an improved Julius is too.
the other Stephen says
Really good podcast with Pete Zayas (from Lakers Ground and Lakers Film Room): https://soundcloud.com/the-lakers-legacy-podcast/the-llp-ep-63-white-board-please-future-lakers-o-d-principles-under-luke-w-lakerfilmroom
J C hoops says
Not that we were really gonna make a good trade for Westbrook anyway, but just because he signed doesn’t mean he can’t or won’t be traded.
In fact this makes his contract more appealing to a team seeking to acquire him via trade since he wouldn’t be a one year rental now that he’s signed for two years plus his PO.
_ Robert _ says
MT:This is from my original
post above:
“I was never in favor of gutting the team to get
Westbrook. Keeping most of our youngsters and somehow crafting a trade for him
would have been nice, but was always a pipedream for obvious reasons. What I thought most of us wanted
was for Westbrook to play out this final year in OKC and then we would possibly
go after him in FA next year. Right?”
So now you are saying:
“I’m with Darius on the idea that gutting the
roster in a trade for Westbrook would be a bad idea.”And
“I will not mourn the passing of this
So where are you disagreeing with me?
MT87 says
_ Robert _ You asked a simple question: “why would Westbrook re-upping in OKC be a good thing?”
I’ve given some reasons. I honestly am not sure what you are confused about. We aren’t actually talking about whether a Westbrook trade would be a good idea, its just tangential to the question you posed.
wwlofficial says
The only guys who aren’t on plateau or decline are the guys that are not in the league, haven’t played much or haven’t had time to play yet. That means, the stars we seek could already be on our team. We just need more time.
As for free agency, play it by ear. Not all years are the same, and Westbrook bypassing it was actually a smart move considering he wanted a team for himself ala Kobe all along. Now he can pick his mates and actually get someone that can be 2nd fiddle to him. Happy for him, OKC will be a team I’ll be interested to watch this year.
I’m still amazed at posters saying they know better. Yeah right.
MT87 says
HamSinkie MT87 If he had actually wanted to come here in FA next year I would have been more than happy to have the Lakers give him their money, but it clearly isn’t going to go that way. If he decides, years in the future, that he actually wants to be a Laker more than anything else than I have no doubt that mountains will be moved to make it happen. In the meantime the one year window is right where we left it.
matt24 says
It’s crazy to see that after this offseason free agency failure people still think we have a chance at a top player next year.
fern16 says
I don’t see any failures. There was no shot at the elite FAs any Laker fan with a bit of knowledge knew that. And we prefer to see what the kids can do. How we do in FA next summer depends on how the team performs next season…
KevTheBold says
Well alright,.. it’s time to get some signatures on contracts, and cut some useless or damaging, extraneous fat from the roster.
Has anyone seen any interesting, or at least productive tweets from Lou or Swaggy this summer ?
I haven’t.
That is what unless one considers Nick going shopping in $18,000 pajamas as a sign that he’s working on his defense.