After missing out on Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets, the Los Angeles Lakers’ search for a new point guard continues. It is evident, looking at how Hollywood has panned out their season, they need help from the market. But in order to bring a star player, LA will have to compromise on their first-round draft picks for 2027 and 2029. And the front office doesn’t have enough faith in this season to sacrifice their future to put everything this year. As of now, the Lakers are not even in the top 10 to secure a playoff spot in the future.
Many reports suggest that LA has a plan B after missing the most prominent player who could have brought the title contention. Even Irving showed great interest in playing for the Lakers and reuniting with his former Cavaliers teammate LeBron James. But after a shocking surprise move from Dallas Cowboys, LA will need another strategy to penetrate the market. Although there are many fishes to catch in the market, many fishermen are tracking the Lakers. However, after crossing the deadline on Thursday, the 2020 champs will still have options to buy out players.
The Lakers Could Get John Wall
In the quest to sign a new point guard to the team, LA has stumbled upon Los Angeles Clippers’ John Wall. According to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report, the 2020 champs are interested in buying out the entire contract for Wall. It seems that even the Clippers are in the market to upgrade their point guard for the postseason. This will allow Hollywood to slip into the market for a better point guard who is averaging 11.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 5.2 assists. Comparatively, Westbrook is still a better option, but his contract does not match up to his clutch performances.
As of now, Russell Westbrook has one of highest paying contracts after Stephen Curry in the entire league. And due to such high expenses, no other team is ready to take Westbrook on their team. Besides his disappointing performances, Russ also lacks compatibility with the Lakers superstars. And stats suggest that Clippers point guard Wall also lacks consistency in his performance. It would not be such a good move if John is bought and performs poorly, leading to a postseason fallout. However, the Lakers are nowhere near a promised postseason contention due to their shaky season campaign.
There is no denying that the Lakers need win for the rest of the remaining campaign. But they also need it more strategically and consistently throughout the remaining games. If the team does not manage to pull wins against the weak and obvious teams, then they could farewell to the playoff spot. The tight schedule and back-to-back games would make it hard for them, but the Lakers must be persistent.