On January 27, Beijing time, in yesterday's Lakers' victory over the Nets, Lakers star Anthony Davis officially returned, and the Lakers' big three finally fit together again, which also means that the Lakers, who have been suffering from injuries this season, have gradually become healthy, and with the deepening of the season and the integrity of the personnel, it is time for the Lakers to consider the final rotation lineup. And as the trading deadline approaches, whether the Lakers want to trade Wei Shao also needs to be decided as soon as possible, after all, this also involves the re-cultivation of chemical reactions, and today, the Lakers finally made a decision on everything.
First of all, the Lakers' roster this season has been kept in the last place, the purpose is to maintain flexibility in the free market, so that they can always look for money, but now, they seem to have found the most wanted player, that is, temporary worker Stanley Johnson. According to The Athletic reporter Shams Charania, multiple sources revealed that the Lakers signed a 2-year contract with forward Stanley Johnson. According to reports, the 2022-23 season of this contract is a team option. The two sides are expected to formally sign the contract tomorrow.
As the No. 8 show in 2015, Johnson has not been satisfied in the NBA these years, but this season after signing 2 10-day contracts with the Lakers, he has continuously proved himself through his own efforts, and has also impressed the Lakers management. Johnson averaged 21.2 minutes per game, had 6.4 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.8 steals, his positive attitude and strong defense officially the Lakers needed, in yesterday's game, he even partnered the Big Three to become the team's starter, the Lakers left him is not surprising.
It is worth mentioning that the Lakers have been discussing some two-for-one deals for players on the edge of the lineup, but ultimately decided to use the 15th place in the lineup to sign Johnson, especially since he was willing to accept a one-year team option. That gives the Lakers some flexibility in trading this summer. At the same time, this operation of the Lakers means that they are willing to gamble on Johnson and give him the precious last place, thus giving up continuing to hunt in the free market, and whether Johnson can eventually return the trust of the Lakers depends on his next performance.
Of course, the same for the Lakers to choose to gamble is also Wei Shao, although the recent news about Wei Shao for Wohl has been boiling over, but now it seems that everything can finally be settled, Wei Shao can also rest assured. Because according to NBA reporter Marc Stein, sources revealed that the Lakers have no intention of sending out the 2027 first-round pick in the John Wall and Russell Westbrook trades.
Sources revealed that after getting Westbrook at a great cost, they did not want to send him away so quickly and at a high price. Unless the trade can be extended to multiple teams so that the Lakers don't have to send out draft picks, the Lakers will bet on Westbrook to play better like the second half of last season. This is actually what many fans expected before, the current trading value of Wei Shao is too low, at this time the transaction can not be exchanged for the right player, and even the Lakers themselves posted valuable draft picks, rather than being robbed by other teams at this time, it is better to bet hard that Wei Shao can pick up.
The good news is that in recent games, Westbrook has indeed started to recover somewhat, especially after the return of thick eyebrows and the official integration of the big three, we still hope to see a better Westbrook.