The Los Angeles Lakers had a highly disappointing season and are looking to bounce back. The Lakers have altered their roster to have a younger supporting cast around LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
New head coach Darvin Ham will need to make a quick turnaround as they have a limited title window. LeBron can't play forever, so it's important to maximize the talent around him while they can. Ham's new system and leadership will help move them in the right direction, but it will be an uphill climb.
Los Angeles missed the playoffs altogether last season with the new big three of LeBron, AD, and Russell Westbrook. James and Davis both missed significant time due to injury, while Westbrook struggled to fit with the team.
The surrounding cast of role players were mostly veterans past their prime. This led to teams around the league with young players outrunning them with hustle plays, which was a huge disappointment for Lakers fans. Even a great season from LeBron, when he was healthy, was not enough to get LA into the play-in tournament.
The Lakers need to improve their roster more if they want to get back into championship contention. With that said, here is Los Angeles' worst move of the 2022 NBA offseason … so far.
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Lakers' worst move of 2022 NBA offseason
Not trading Russell Westbrook
The Westbrook experiment did not work out for LeBron and company. Trading Westbrook would allow Los Angeles to find a better fit around the superstar duo of LeBron and AD. However, despite many rumors, they have yet to move the 33-year-old guard.
Kyrie Irving is the main target for LA following Kevin Durant's Brooklyn Nets trade request. Irving would be an ideal replacement, as he is one of the best players in the league when he is on the court. He also has experience with LeBron, as they won a championship together in 2016 with the Cleveland Cavaliers. His shooting ability makes him a much better fit than Westbrook.
However, talks have reportedly stalled as the Nets prefer to trade Durant before moving on from Irving.
If Brooklyn decides to keep Irving, the Lakers still need to move on from Westbrook, no matter what little talks the team's stars have had together. The Utah Jazz and New York Knicks both could be potential landing spots if a Donovan Mitchell trade is made between the teams. Utah could be enticed to take on Westbrook with a first-round pick (or two) and then buy him out. The Lakers could acquire role players from the Jazz as they retool their roster.
For a New York trade, the Knicks could get rid of Julius Randle in a Westbrook deal, perhaps get more draft capital, and then likely buy Russ out unless they actually wanted to keep him around.
Whatever move the Lakers can make should be done, as running it back with Westbrook and expecting different results is risky. He averaged 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 7.1 assists, which are not terrible numbers. However, his shooting splits were not great, as he shot 44.4 percent from the field and 29.8 percent from 3-point range. Westbrook also finished with 3.8 turnovers per game, which was another negative for the Lakers.
Although he wasn't the sole problem for Los Angeles last season, trading three role players in Kentavious Caldwell Pope, Kyle Kuzma, and Montrezl Harrell hurt the team. Getting Irving for Westbrook plus draft capital would be ideal, but even getting role players would help the Lakers improve.
If Los Angeles does not end up moving Westbrook, it will be the worst decision of the offseason.
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