The trading market is very lively, and the Lakers are quiet.
Los Angeles Times reporter Dan Voyke wrote in an op-ed: "The trade deadline may be the Lakers' last chance to complete a big run this season, but they did nothing. ”
The Lakers are not doing nothing, they are also asking for prices, but there is no buyer, which general manager will be confused to change to this season's basketball comedian Wei Shao, or Tucker, whose value has plummeted at least half from a year ago, and Nunn, who is still recovering from injuries?
The 2027 first-round pick is the Lakers' only attractive chip, but they are hesitant, considering the age of old Zhan and the durability of the thick eyebrows, this first-round pick in five years may be a high pick. The Lakers have now lost in a dilapidated way, and the future will be torn apart?
Moreover, even if the Lakers are willing to give this first-round pick, they can't change anything, for example, the plan given by the Rockets is Wall to change the first round of the pick, which is not equivalent to the Lakers just put down a bottle of "poison", immediately pick up another bottle, but also a first-round pick, Pelinka even if the last two years in the operation is not so smart, but not stupid.
"You can't force other teams to make deals that help you improve your squad," Pelinka said, "and you haven't been able to find a plan that can have a positive impact on the team in the short and long term." ”
To put it simply, it's not that the Lakers don't want to trade, but they really can't trade.
Pelinka said of head coach Vogel in the interview, saying this: "Vogel is our manager and we will continue to support him with all our strength and success only by assisting each other. ”
This kind of public interview words, can not be fully believed, Nash also said a few days ago that the Nets do not trade Harden, the result of the blink of an eye Deng ge went to Philadelphia, but Vogel's coaching position is temporarily worry-free may be the truth, the Lakers now change the coach meaningless, they can not find a more suitable replacement in the short term, but may add chaos, it is better to let Vogel coach until the end of the season, then "divide the pot" to see how much to give the coach.
Vogel's departure this season is unlikely, meaning Westbrook's playing time could be further compressed. The Lakers were slaughtered by the Bucks, and Vogel replaced Westbrook with 2:34 left in the third quarter until the final game.
From not giving up the last few minutes of the decisive moment, to now abandoning more than a whole section of time, Vogel is becoming more and more "rude" to Wei Shao, which means that he and the management have reached a consensus that Wei Shao's playing time can be arranged according to the game situation.
The question is, can the Lakers use less Will, or simply don't use it, and they can win? Against the Blazers, Wei Shao did not play, and the Lakers did not lose. The Bucks are the defending champions, the Lakers can't beat, the Blazers are rebuilt, and the Lakers can't win.
Now this Lakers can't do it in two places, the offense can't do it, the defense can't do it, the offensive efficiency league is 23rd, the defensive efficiency is 17th, the Lakers are at this level, and they really have to thank the league for setting up a play-off system.
Of course, even if there is a playoff, the Lakers, who are currently ranked ninth in the West, may not be able to pass, don't pull the championship now, the actual point will rush into the playoffs as a goal, the Lakers also need to do some reinforcements in the lineup, otherwise it may be a holiday at the end of the regular season.
The trading market has been closed, how can the Lakers still bring reinforcements? There is also a time point for the NBA to operate players during the season, March 1, local time (March 2, Beijing time), this day is the deadline for layoffs playoff qualification, players who play for NBA teams this season, only before this day are laid off, are eligible to play the playoffs for the new owner this season.
Layoffs include two concepts, one is waive and the other is buyout, the difference is in the way it is executed. The layoff is simple and crude, the team does not need to negotiate with the player, directly terminate the contract, but do so to pay the player's rest of the contract in full guaranteed wages.
A buyout is when the team negotiates with the player to reach a buyout amount, which is usually lower than the player's guaranteed salary for the remaining contract. After the buyout agreement is negotiated, the player passes a 48-hour clears waivers and becomes a free agent if no team claims it, and the original team pays the buyout fee according to the terms of the agreement.
In the case that the player's contract is not the basic salary, the buyout is a more common way to break up, the team can save money, and although the player loses part of the salary, but can go to the self-identified center of the team, it is also a win-win situation.
Here to explain, March 1 is the layoffs playoff qualification deadline, not the signing deadline, the signing deadline is the last game day of the team's regular season, this season in the NBA, players who are cut before March 1, as long as they sign before the last game day of the team's regular season, they can play the playoffs. In addition, players who have not played in the NBA this season (including playing in overseas leagues) are not limited by the time point of March 1, and they can play in the playoffs as long as they get a contract before the team's final game day of the regular season.
The Lakers, who have achieved nothing in the trading market, can also hope for a layoff market, or more precisely a buyout market, which has several candidates, including Dragic, Bledsoe, Gary Harris, Schroeder, Satoransky, Favors, Tristan Thompson and so on.
Let's first talk about the merits of these candidates, Dragic is a point guard with a steady style, Bledsoe is a strong defensive style, Harris is a good three-point shot, Schroeder is a lakers veteran, if the return to integration speed will be very fast, Satoranski can shoot a shot can also defend a defense, both are not elite, but also available. Favors was the big man to play against under the basket, and the jump shot wasn't great, but it was better than Howard and Jordan Jr. Thompson is James' old teammate and is more capable of grabbing the board.
Speaking of the shortcomings of these candidates, Dragic is 36, and the Lakers are not old enough? Bledsoe's shot wasn't much better than Westbrook's. Harris can shoot, but basically can't defend. Schroeder made a mess with the Lakers last season, and Thick Brow said it was uncomfortable to receive Schroeder's pass. Satoransky has no outstanding advantage in the project and is a very moderate choice. Favors' jump shot is better than Jordan Jr.'s skills, and the spatial effect he can bring to the team is very limited. As for Thompson, there is basically no spatial effect to speak of.
So, there is no ideal choice? Don't worry, the Lakers choose others, and people may not choose the Lakers.
Players who accept buyouts usually have two kinds, one is that their careers have reached the end stage and are eager to join a strong team to fight for the championship, and the other is that they can't get a chance in the original team, hoping to change to a more suitable team, usually can play the playoffs, so that they have more opportunities to perform and can fight for better contracts in the offseason.
Dragic, for example, considers the warriors, bulls, nets, lone rangers and Clippers, of which the Bulls and Warriors are second in the East and West, the Lone Rangers in the West, and the Clippers, although eighth, are also higher than the Lakers, and indeed lack the ball. Although the Nets are not in good condition recently, they are different from the Lakers, they are stars who can't always get together to play, and when Durant returns, it will be better, and the Lakers are the big three to play more troublesome, so although the Nets have suffered consecutive defeats recently, they are still rushing to the championship level when they are all healthy, and the Lakers are obviously not.
Today's Lakers, is more than the upper deficiencies, not much richer than the lower, the relative advantage is very high exposure, if you play well will get praise from all sides, but if you play badly, the value can be directly lost, last season's Schroeder, this season's Wei Shao, is not all like this?
The Lakers do not have the capital to pick and choose, buy out the top players in the market, may not be able to look up to the Lakers, even if they can see it, can the Lakers reverse the end of the season with one or two buyout players?
Maybe not, but if the Lakers do nothing, the negative emotions inside may cause their 2021-22 season to collapse early, and the Lakers are like being in the middle of a vast desert and need to see the hope of water.
Even so, this hope may be just a mirage.