On April 21, Beijing time, HoopsHyp experts Michael Scotto and Yossi Gozlan interviewed a number of league executives and analyzed the lakers' current six major suspense, involving the future of Westbrook, James's contract extension, thick eyebrows, Tucknern transaction, Munch's value, Pelinka and Vogel's future.
Suspense one: the future of Wei Shao
Westbrook will certainly execute the 47 million player option, and three executives have their opinions on Westbrook's future. One executive said: "Westbrook is still considered a negative asset by most teams, but some teams may be willing to eat wester than one year of high-paying contracts to reduce the cost of salaries for the next three years." ”
Another executive said: "Right now, the value of his deal is very negative. But the Lakers only need to find a team with a lot of garbage contracts and hope to bring in talented teams in the future, and a trade can happen. 95% of teams think Westbrook's contract is terrible, and no one will want to trade unless they can give the Lakers a bunch of garbage contracts in the deal. ”
The third executive said directly that he would not consider buying Wei Shao at all.
Expert Gozlan believes that if Wei Shao can't be replaced, the Lakers are unlikely to lay off Wei Shao by deferring payment for three years, after all, they have just been freed from Deng's contract and do not want to repeat the same mistakes.
Suspense two: James' contract extension
James is eligible to renew his contract early with the Lakers on August 5, up to a maximum of $97.1 million in your contract for 2 years. Expert Gozlan speculated that the Lakers would make an offer as soon as possible. James may not sign, though. He wants to continue to put pressure on the Lakers, and he is confident that he will continue to sign big contracts in the future.
If James doesn't renew his contract and the Lakers only have thick eyebrows and Tucker in the 2023 post-2023 lineup, they will free up about $60 million in salary space. However, in reality, this is unlikely to happen, because Wei Shao is more likely to leave, and he will exchange some long-term contracts. There won't be so much space by then.
Suspense three: the departure of thick eyebrows
Thick eyebrow trading rumors have also spread a lot, but the two experts do not think he will leave the Lakers, although he has problems such as injury and illness. Expert Scotto I personally feel that James and Thick Brow believe that if they stay healthy, they still have a chance to win the championship. Thick Brow and James have a very good relationship, they belong to the same agency and are consistent in their positions.
Another expert, Gozlan, believes that Healthy Thick Brow is still in the league's top ten stars, and from his personal point of view, he has missed many games due to injury in the past two years, so it was a good decision to renew the big contract early at that time.
Suspense Four: Horton Tucker, Nunn and draft picks
Expert Scotto thinks he would be shocked if Horton Tucker, Nunn and multiple first-round picks don't make frequent appearances on Lakers' trade offers this year. Aside from Thick Brow and James, that's pretty much the only way the Lakers can improve their lineup.
Another expert, Gozlan, said the Lakers would ideally trade Westbrook without attaching a draft pick, and then fill the roster with role players. Then try to pack trades for Tucker and Nunn, two players who can bring back players who make about $20 million a year, and maybe put on a draft pick to see what they can get.
Suspense Five: Munch's free agent market value
Expert Scotto interviewed four executives, and Munch's estimated annual salary is between $6 million and $10 million. One executive said: "Munch has played very well this season, and last summer I was surprised that he only got a basic salary contract, and at that time I thought he could take more." Munch's shooting ability is quite good, and if he is on a good team, his scoring and shooting ability will play an important role. ”
Another executive said: "Munch should at least get a middle-class exception, starting at $6.4 million, which would be the highest price the Lakers can give." Even if the Lakers are willing to make a middle-class exception, I think there will be many teams that will give higher price tags. Munch obviously wants to stay with the Lakers, but if there is a team that gives a much higher price than the Lakers, the possibility of him leaving the team exists, and the Lakers have to be prepared for this. ”
Suspense Six: The Future of Pelinka and Vogel
Expert Scotto said that the Lakers lost Caruso, McGee and others, these losses are underestimated, and Pelinka's behavior of firing Vogel has also caused discussion among executives. Their assessment was that Vogel was clearly a scapegoat.
One executive said: "Frank (Vogel) is definitely a scapegoat, the current management is maintained for another year, and if the results do not improve, changes are expected." "Another executive also said Vogel was a scapegoat." He (Vogel) is well respected in coaching circles and he will at least get the position of senior assistant coach. ”