With 33 wins and 49 losses, ranking 11th in the West, the Lakers bid farewell to the season in this way, disappointing the fans who shouted the slogan "Lakers Championship" at the beginning of the season, and also making the Lakers face the possibility of falling apart.
What will happen to the Lakers next season? It's time for James to renew his contract, and It's time for Westbrook to make a stay, can Brother Thick Brow take on the role of the team's future core? This is all the Lakers have to consider, and now, the Lakers are ready to dismiss the employer coach Vogel, and their changes are about to begin.
But the Lakers want to change, in fact, it is not so easy! The combination of James and thick eyebrows is still very competitive. The thick eyebrows directly said: We have changed some things after winning the championship, not just injuries, I will find the mentality when we won the championship with James, and I believe we can return to the championship.
Yes, James and Thick Brow do have a chance to win the championship, and even if they trade, the Lakers may not be able to exchange for better chips, so the possibility of Thick Eyebrows and James changing is not high! Then the Lakers want to make a difference next season, or want to change the lineup, can only start from Wei Shao.
Wei Shao has fallen to the bottom this season, whether it is the role or reputation, which makes Wei Shao's value greatly reduced, and now Wei Shao who is willing to take over? Or you can go to the Rockets' Wall, but the significance is not great, the Wizards, Hornets want Wei Shao, the same can not pay too much chips, Wei Shao is a difficult problem for the Lakers to solve.
But in fact, in addition to these 3 people, the Lakers also have a very good trading chip, or a breakthrough for them to change the lineup, yes, this player is Tucker.
Tucker signed a 3-year, 30.87 million contract with the Lakers last season, officially corrected by the team, and also became a member of the team's main battle force after Kuzma and Pop left the team! Unfortunately, Tucker's performance is still too immature, averaging 10 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game this season, shooting only 41.6% from the field, averaging 1.4 turnovers per game, whether it is offense or defense, there are big problems, and it does not play the performance that the team expects.
To put it bluntly, Tucker is now a type of data brush, the state is good and bad, it does not play a role in the Lakers, and it is also the reason why fans are not optimistic about him.
So since Tucker is not doing well and the contract is not low, where does his transaction value come from? Yes, teams like the playoff level, or the championship level, are certainly not interested in Tucker, but some rebuilding teams have a lot of ideas about Tucker.
Tucker played badly, but he still showed some potential, as evidenced by the Warriors' 40 points! It's just that because he's on the Lakers, there aren't so many performance opportunities, and the team can't design too many tactics around him, plus the Lakers' goal is to win the championship, which makes Tucker bear a lot of pressure, so his performance is not good! But his potential is indisputable, and if he brushes a copy for a year or two on a weak team, he definitely has a chance to become a star-level player, so Tucker has a lot of value.
Because of Tucker, the Lakers can completely change his direction! Whether it is a package trade between him and Westbrook, or a direct trade, it is enough to exchange for a 3D player with both offense and defense, to make up for the Lack of Lakers defense and outside 3 points, and to free up salary space.
In this way, whether the Lakers continue to james + thick eyebrows of the double core, or James + thick eyebrows + Wei Shao's 3 cores, can greatly change the appearance of role players, make the team young, upgrade, find some practical players, rather than blindly pile up veterans, so that the Lakers still have the possibility of re-emergence, and the Lakers' roots are not chaotic.
Tucker's value is not so high, but it is indeed a point where the Lakers break the game, and as for how the Lakers choose, it depends on their operations in the offseason.