Why The Trade Makes Sense For The Los Angeles Lakers
In this exchange, the Los Angeles Lakers have got one eye on the present and one eye on the future. Often, dividing your focus can cause you to lose sight of each. This trade may be an exception.
Patrick William is probably the main draw for the Lakers here. As a team that’s very light on interesting young players and draft capital, the opportunity to acquire a blue-chip prospect might be hard to pass up.
Still, the addition of Nikola Vucevic has interesting implications for their present. With so much attention paid to Westbrook’s inability to fit with LeBron James, there’s an important question that is not frequently posed:
What if his inability to fit with Anthony Davis was the problem?
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Everyone knows you need a stretch big to maximize Westbrook’s driving lanes. Surrounding LeBron James with spacing never hurt either.
Vucevic isn’t as impactful a player as Davis overall, but, he is a much better shooter. With this deal, the Lakers may lose the best player, but they may gain a brighter present and future in the process.