The Westbrook deal may have been shelved, and the Lakers tended to let him finish the season on the team.
Marc Stein wrote again today analyzing Westbrook's trading prospects, saying current indications suggest that Westbrook is likely to finish the season with the Lakers. Stein's analysis pointed out that the Lakers are not willing to pay for the 27-year first round of the deal, and he also proposed two points, both of which are the reasons for the suspension of the Westbrook deal.
First, the Deal of Westbrook has cost the Lakers too much, and the Lakers have to maintain their own face
The Lakers trade Wei Shao paid a lot of team quality resources, in hindsight, the Lakers this deal is not earned, at least in the eyes of others is very loss-making. But let's be fair here.
The trade with Westbrook was really bad, but the situation and help of Kuzma, Pop, Harrell and others in the team at that time was already very bad. The Lakers, who run the James system, have encountered a lot of problems with lineup flexibility last year, many people do not really contribute, and the structure of the Lakers lineup and LeBron's health at that time are problems, and the Lakers also have a collapse in the playoffs.
When these issues converge, they become a huge call for a trade at the beginning of the season.
A lot of fans and media who have no opinions naturally blow up the deal of Wei Shao, and many people who understand the ball know that Wei Shao and James's players have conflicts, but what everyone did not expect is that James's state is better than last season, which has formed a stronger conflict.
If James' state declines, his physical function declines, and he loses his dominance similarly to last season, then Westbrook's possession of the ball and James' cooperation in the flanks without the ball end are all natural transitions. But James' own efficiency is still improving, and Westbrook's possession of the ball seems unnecessary. Moreover, wei Shao is not a meticulous player in comparison, and on the big stage of his hometown in Los Angeles, his shortcomings are infinitely magnified, forming a strong psychological pressure. As a result, the discord between James and Westbrook in dominating the ball has become a significant problem.
The scene is also very obvious, Wei Shao's style as the historical triple-double king has not been shown, that is, there is still potential to be tapped, which leaves an excuse for the Lakers not to trade. This is mainly to maintain the face of his own trade. Now trading Westbrook also affirms the brainlessness of the Lakers' entire team in the Westbrook trade, which is very unfavorable to their public opinion environment.
Judging from the situation on the court, James does not seem to be unhappy, but is leading the Lakers forward. The current Westbrook also retracted his mistakes, reducing the ball holding as much as possible and making a pitcher on the flanks in peace.
Since James is still capable, the best way for Wei Shao to place himself is to place himself in a role player position.
So, here's the key figure James.
The second point, the Westbrook deal, was actively promoted by James and Thick Brow
This point, some fans may not be willing to accept, James is so smart, how can he be willing to trade to Westbrook?
We're going to make an illustration of this, first of all, James probably didn't realize he was going to get back so good.
As mentioned above, the Lakers' situation last season was very bad, and James also had doubts, and this doubt must also have doubts about himself. So he may have stepped up his training and recovery breaks in the offseason, but he didn't know he still had that energy. This is not surprising.
In this case, the Lakers bring in a superstar point guard much better than Hield or DeRozan. Hield is not a big-face figure, not a star, and DeRozan has a history of unsuccessful success, which is difficult to believe. In comparison, Wei Shao is the most reliable and the easiest to get.
Therefore, Westbrook is likely to come to the Lakers in the context of James's doubts about himself, and has high hopes for the Lakers in leading the team with the ball.
It's just that what happened later, unlike expectations in the offseason, the competitive James was stronger and didn't let up any of them. But Westbrook is still the biggest guarantee for the Lakers to lead the team outside of James. This factor has also always existed.
So you can't easily trade Wei Shao.
James' health risks as the big core of the elderly ball holder have always existed, and the Lakers must take a long-term view to avoid the dilemma of the team after James's injury in the first two seasons. Wei Shao has always been an insurance, and as insurance, he may have a longer-term value than the rumored trading object's immediate combat strength.
On the whole, the Lakers have paid a huge price in the transaction of Wei Shao, and they will not lightly say that they have failed, at least after playing this season. At the same time, James and Thick Brow actively promoted the transaction, and the health risks of these two people have always been, and the insurance of Westbrook has a longer-term value.
As for the previous article that James and Thick Brow wantEdRozan rather than Westbrook, the Lakers' management has an invisible manager, which is likely to be unreliable.
Most of these articles appeared in the most turbulent period of the Lakers, and there is a possibility of fanning the flames. In addition, the size of Wei Shao's deal is very large, and if Zhan Mei does not agree at all, the management cannot fail to consider it, because this is the team based on them, and there is no management to deliberately collapse the team. And the Lakers management has seen and eaten, it is more impossible not to understand the ball, which is more inclined to a risk stock that has a risk, that is, James and Westbrook partnered, the worst thing happened.
But everything should be with a positive attitude, the Lakers are getting better, we from James, Davis, Westbrook, Howard, Munch, not see the frustration and lack of concentration before the fall apart, but see a kind of perseverance, fearlessness, bravery. They think, change, move forward, are not afraid of gossip, and deserve the jersey on their bodies.
Please support them and keep loving, because every step of the change and implementation is more difficult than imagined.