Dallas Mavericks Receive: G Russell Westbrook, 2027 First-Round Pick (LAL)
Los Angeles Lakers Receive: G Jalen Brunson, F Davis Bertans, C Dwight Powell
Here, the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks cut the Pistons out of a deal and come to an arrangement on their own.
Many Mavericks fans are likely to prefer the first trade in this piece. That’s understandable. Jerami Grant is a more favorable package for a win-now club than Westbrook and a pick. Still, this trade could help them in the near future.
They’re acquiring an expiring contract in Westbrook and shedding a problematic one in Bertans. They could enter the summer of 2023 with significant ambitions in free agency. Alternatively, they could use their newfound cap space to broker a separate trade for a star.
Furthermore, they may actually be able to use Westbrook. Maybe that sounds crazy. On the other hand, they’d be in a perfect position to use him as a supercharged sixth man who was allowed to run the offense as he pleased while Luka sat.
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Alternatively, they could sit him down for a year. They’re more interested in the expiring contract, shedding Bertans and the first-round pick here. It won’t be an inspiring move for this fanbase, but it could prove to be a prudent one down the line.