Why the Los Angeles Lakers could say yes:
There are two big pros in making this trade for the Los Angeles Lakers and they are both quite obvious. The team gets to move off of Russell Westbrook while also getting to do so without trading a first-round pick.
The question then becomes if the pros outweigh the cons for the team. The cons of this deal include the contracts that the team is taking on in return. There is a reasonable fear that Julius Randle is on a bad contract with how he played last season and with it being for four more seasons.
While last season was not promising, let’s not forget that Randle was an All-NBA guy just a season ago and last season was a wonky one in general for the Knicks. With Randle having someone who can run the offense in LeBron James, he should get better looks and if he accepts the role, could be a great third star next to Anthony Davis and LeBron.
The team has enough size to run a Randle-Davis frontcourt with LeBron, Fournier and a defensive-minded point guard (perhaps if Patrick Beverley gets bought out or is even included in this trade).
Fournier is coming off of a bad season but is still a great shooter at his core and the Lakers don’t have any shooting. Derrick Rose is a great point guard to bring off the bench in the Rajon Rondo role, especially as the Lakers look to limit LeBron’s workload in the end.
Yes, there is a chance that the contract could get bad, but the Lakers could flip it in the future if needed. Plus, if the team extends LeBron it is not going to have cap space to sign an all-star-caliber player next offseason anyway. Sure, they will have slightly more money for role players but that is about it.
Oh, and add in the fact that LA saves $1 million this season and it seems like a lock for the team.