Russell Westbrook's time with the Los Angeles Lakers always seemed like it was about to end soon. The former MVP point guard has been involved in several trade rumors over the last few months. Despite all the talks about a potential trade, though, Westbrook was never moved, and he now figures to be in the immediate plans of L.A.

For a while, though, it really did seem like Russ would be traded away from the team. A recent report revealed the Russell Westbrook trade that the Lakers almost did with the Indiana Pacers. However, this trade never materialized and Russ remains a Laker today.

Per The Athletic: “Vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka, owner Jeanie Buss and senior basketball adviser Kurt Rambis seriously considered sending Westbrook and unprotected first-round picks in 2027 and 2029 to the Pacers for center Myles Turner and guard Buddy Hield, sources said.”

The Pacers were one of the teams that were heavily involved in discussions about a potential Westbrook trade. The Lakers have been linked to the Pacers since these Westbrook rumors started. While talks have seemingly stalled for now, there's a possibility that they get reignited at some point. After all, they seem eager to get a return for Myles Turner as soon as possible.

For now, though, it seems like the Lakers front office will give the Westbrook-Anthony Davis-LeBron James trio one more chance to figure things out. They certainly showed flashes of what they could do together. However, if Westbrook falters again to start the year… expect these traded rumors to start firing up again.