Houston Rockets: John Wall
This article is bookended by perhaps the only two trades that the Los Angeles Lakers could make to get Russell Westbrook off the team next season. The Lakers reportedly could have traded for John Wall during the deadline but rejected the offer because of the draft capital needed.
However, if the Lakers miss the playoffs and cannot find a deal for Westbrook at all then the desperation may kick in and the team might just pull the trigger and make the switch. Personally, I do not think it will change anything but I would not be shocked if the Lakers tried something.
It cannot get much worse than Westbrook and the hope is that Wall would mesh better with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Part of me thinks it could be possible with Wall seemingly having less of a basketball ego than Russ but a lot of the holes in Wall’s game are the same as Westbrook’s.
There is also the chance that the Lakers enter another period of being a lottery team and it would be absolutely dreadful to have to swap a top pick in the 2027 NBA Draft with the Rockets over a Westbrook-Wall swap that did nothing for the team.
But if Pelinka is feeling the pressure from both ownership and LeBron to get Westbrook off the court then he might not even care about the prospects of the 2027 NBA Draft. He would not be the first GM to act harshly and make a move like this.
Either way, the Lakers are in a bad spot but at least with Wall there would be some hope.