Westbrook and Wall became brothers and sisters, both of them still have $47 million in annual salaries for the last season, but they are difficult to survive on the team. The Lakers' important task in the offseason is to trade Westbrook, after the famous Mark Stein broke the news that it did not rule out buying out Westbrook. On April 12, Rockets general manager Stone also said that if he could not trade Wall, then he would consider buying him out.
Both Westbrook and Wall are in a bad market. It's not easy to send it away. Westbrook is his personality and style, which makes some teams dare not easily introduce. Wall's injury looms some teams are afraid.
"I think Wall will have a market and we'll find a deal at some point that works for him and for both of us. If it doesn't, we'll cross that bridge when it happens. But that's not something he's focused on, and it's not something I'm focused on. Rockets general manager Stone said.
The Rockets will still focus on trading Wall first, find a home for him, and it really won't work before they consider buying Wall. In the 2021-22 season, Wall did not play a game, in fact, he has already recovered his health. Wall planned to execute his final season contract, and his annual salary reached $47 million.
The Rockets sought a deal with the Lakers in the middle of this season in exchange for Westbrook, but the condition was that the Lakers provide a first-round pick, which was categorically rejected by the Lakers. The Rockets have no interest in Westbrook, who himself left from the Rockets, and the Rockets want to earn a first-round pick. But the Lakers management is not so stupid, will give the Rockets a first-round pick in vain.
The Rockets peddled Wall for a season without success, meaning the offseason team could lower expectations for Wall. After all, since the Rockets are planning to rebuild, they should let the young players on the team do it, and keeping Wall may affect the atmosphere of the team. Rockets leader Jaylen Green proved his potential with 41 points in the finale of the regular season, and his performance in the second half of the season is indeed getting better and better, and it is worth entering the rookie team. Even if Green had played like this since the beginning of the season, he would have been a hot candidate for the best rookie.
The Rockets may restart deal talks with the Lakers, wall and James are on good terms, both from Rich Paul's agency. For the Lakers, Westbrook is replaced by Wall, at least the defense can be improved. Westbrook is not focused enough on the defensive end, and Wall is a defensive master in the point guard. If the Rockets restart the trade, the Lakers may not need to make another first-round pick, or may only need a second-round pick to reach a deal.
Of course, this is one of the Lakers' choices, and it is not excluded that the Lakers have other options, and it is rumored that the Magic team has a certain interest in Wei Shao. Some weak teams in the league may consider introducing Westbrook for the sake of box office and impacting the playoffs, and the Lakers will also list such teams as the object of consideration.