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Lakers should offer this Russell Westbrook-Julius Randle trade to Knicks

By Jason Reed

MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE - MARCH 11: Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum on March 11, 2022 in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that , by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images)
MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE - MARCH 11: Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum on March 11, 2022 in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that , by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers
(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) – Los Angeles Lakers /

The biggest goal for the Los Angeles Lakers this offseason is to somehow get Russell Westbrook off the roster. It has become painfully obvious over the course of the 2021-22 season that Westbrook simply does not fit on the Lakers and makes the team worse.

Westbrook has a player option for the 2022-23 season that is worth $47.1 million. Unless Westbrook is the most delusional player in the league and thinks he can get more money, he will accept that player option.

Thus, a trade is the only way to get Westbrook out of LA and that seems extremely unlikely. The Lakers would have to attach assets to Westbrook in a salary-dump trade to try and switch things around. At this point, it seems improbable.

However, things change, and the Lakers should offer a Russell Westbrook for Julius Randle swap to the Knicks.

The New York Knicks were a team that we touched on here at Lake Show Life as a potential trade destination for Westbrook. New York has been desperate plenty of times before and after such a bad season, you could see the team talking itself into taking on one year of Westbrook and freeing up salary-cap space to pursue a star the following offseason.

However, Marc Stein then reported that the Knicks currently do not have any interest in trading for Westbrook this summer.

Things change, though, and the latest Julius Randle reports could change that. Marc Berman of the New York Post suggested that Randle may want to leave New York. Randle denied that he asked management for a trade but his actions still seem to indicate that he is not happy in New York. He may not have requested a trade yet. 

There absolutely is a reality in which the Knicks are shopping Randle after a horrible season and that is where the Los Angeles Lakers should come in. In the following pages, we will break down the trade package that it would take to make it work logistically and explain why both teams may say yes.

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