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The Los Angeles Lakers have had a mini-resurgence as they've climbed out of their 2-10 hole to start the season. It's come in part thanks to Russell Westbrook buying into his sixth-man role off the bench. But just because Westbrook is finally playing nice, doesn't mean they wouldn't pull the trigger on a potential trade.
One such trade that's been floated around of late involves the Chicago Bulls and their two aging All-Stars in DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic. The idea is for the two struggling teams to conduct a potential swap of veteran stars with the Lakers sweetening the pot with their unprotected future firsts.
But according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Lakers' interest in such a deal isn't being reciprocated, with “no interest” coming from the Bulls side:
“So while the Lakers might be looking to make a big trade and have their eyes on the Bulls’ roster, the feeling isn’t mutual. According to a source, executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas has no interest in acquiring Russell Westbrook and his expiring contract, even if it means adding draft picks.
“Might that change by the trade deadline Feb. 9? With Karnisovas, everything is usually on the table. As of right now, however, the Bulls are still set on monitoring Lonzo Ball and his surgically repaired left knee, with the hope he will return and give them a glimpse of what they will look like whole.”
With the NBA standings still packed so tightly, several teams, including the Bulls, remain optimistic that they can climb up the playoff picture. But as the season goes along and expected wins and losses turn into concrete ones, teams gain more clarity in what strategy they must undertake going forward.
The Lakers know that no matter what, they'll try to compete in order to maximize LeBron James while he still wears purple and gold. What the Bulls eventually decide to do and where they'll be a couple of months from now remains to be seen.
