Russell Westbrook Exercises $47.1M Option With Lakers

Post #1 » by **RealGM Wiretap** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 3:12 pm

Russell Westbrook will exercise his $47.1 million player option with the Los Angeles Lakers for the 22-23 season.

Westbrook was widely expected to exercise the option.

Westbrook's future with the Lakers is uncertain after a disappointing 21-22 season. The Lakers have hoped that a coaching change could help Westbrook become a more productive part of the team.

Via Adrian Wojnarowski/ESPN

rgm70 · Post #2 » by **rgm70** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 3:44 pm

I am a laker for life and am grateful for Lebron bringing us a title in 2020, but this Westbrook fiasco is all on him. Lebron forced the lakers FO's hand with this trade. Two wasted years. Sorry Lebron, but you did this to us.

YourGM99 · Post #3 » by **YourGM99** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 4:02 pm

rgm70 wrote:I am a laker for life and am grateful for Lebron bringing us a title in 2020, but this Westbrook fiasco is all on him. Lebron forced the lakers FO's hand with this trade. Two wasted years. Sorry Lebron, but you did this to us.

I guess you can blame Lebron for taking the only high risk - high reward option available since the lakers front office was steadfast in their decision to not take on long term money and trade future draft picks. Every decision by the Lakers font office leading up to the Westbrook trade showed they were unwilling to leverage future cap space and assets to go after another championship.

Not trading for Lowry who wanted an extension
Not resigning Caruso
Not signing Derozen who wanted a longer contract
Trading away players who they just signed to long term contracts: Kuzma and KCP
Trading away a player who were due for an extension: Trez
Unwilling to trade draft picks to upgrade the team.

rgm70 · Post #4 » by **rgm70** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 4:33 pm

YourGM99 wrote:
rgm70 wrote:I am a laker for life and am grateful for Lebron bringing us a title in 2020, but this Westbrook fiasco is all on him. Lebron forced the lakers FO's hand with this trade. Two wasted years. Sorry Lebron, but you did this to us.

I guess you can blame Lebron for taking the only high risk - high reward option available since the lakers front office was steadfast in their decision to not take on long term money and trade future draft picks. Every decision by the Lakers font office leading up to the Westbrook trade showed they were unwilling to leverage future cap space and assets to go after another championship.

Not trading for Lowry who wanted an extension
Not resigning Caruso
Not signing Derozen who wanted a longer contract
Trading away players who they just signed to long term contracts: Kuzma and KCP
Trading away a player who were due for an extension: Trez
Unwilling to trade draft picks to upgrade the team.

high risk - high fail in this case...

tigerae · Post #5 » by **tigerae** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 4:43 pm

rgm70 wrote:I am a laker for life and am grateful for Lebron bringing us a title in 2020, but this Westbrook fiasco is all on him. Lebron forced the lakers FO's hand with this trade. Two wasted years. Sorry Lebron, but you did this to us.

As Laker fans we are spoiled by the amount of championships that the team has where some fans don't really value a championship as much anymore. Teams like the Kings, Cavs, Clippers and so on would give anything just for 1 championship.

LeBron has been the most consistent superstar, even at his age, for the Lakers. Their record without him on the floor is abismal. AD is a overhyped superstar imo, especially since they won a championship. He plays soft, causing injuries due to that and can't dominate to win games even against bad teams. Shaq and Kobe were both able to carry the load when the other was out in spurts. AD just doesn't seem to have that type of drive.

The other issue I have is Vogel. Russ was handicapped from the beginning by Vogel's system. He tried to fit in but the system set him for failure from the beginning. AD has no business pushing the ball up or going one on one at the 3pt line, yet Vogel was fine with that. Not only did that make AD tired and less effective, it took the ball out of Russ' hands. He should be in the post or setting picks, that's it. I want the AD from his NO days where he was a monster 20 feet and in. All the team had to do was watch lots of film on the Heat's LBJ, Wade and Bosh trio and basically copy that game plan.

Lastly, the front office has been horrible since LeBron got here. His first year they decided to surround him with playmakers instead of shooters. LeBron wanted Lue yet they botched that by offering him only a 2 year deal and forcing Kidd on the coaching staff. They had things in place to bring DeRozan and Heild but instead got Russ. Maybe LeBron had some say there, but in the end this front office makeup wanted the big name, too. If LeBron had any actual influence on the FO Lue would have been hired instead of Vogel or Mark Jackson now instead of Ham.

If anything, I think the FO is ruining the last years of LeBron's career, but he did want to go to the Lakers even with the Buss kids nonsense. He had other options, like the Clippers, who had a much better roster and front office to get him multiple chances at championships.

objectivefan · Post #6 » by **objectivefan** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 5:08 pm

YourGM99 wrote:
rgm70 wrote:I am a laker for life and am grateful for Lebron bringing us a title in 2020, but this Westbrook fiasco is all on him. Lebron forced the lakers FO's hand with this trade. Two wasted years. Sorry Lebron, but you did this to us.

I guess you can blame Lebron for taking the only high risk - high reward option available since the lakers front office was steadfast in their decision to not take on long term money and trade future draft picks. Every decision by the Lakers font office leading up to the Westbrook trade showed they were unwilling to leverage future cap space and assets to go after another championship.

Not trading for Lowry who wanted an extension
Not resigning Caruso
Not signing Derozen who wanted a longer contract
Trading away players who they just signed to long term contracts: Kuzma and KCP
Trading away a player who were due for an extension: Trez
Unwilling to trade draft picks to upgrade the team.

- They need to explain the Nunn signing
- Ariza? WTH

- Trading away Zubac for 2 donuts and a diet coke. I really thought that he would fit alongside AD and Bron, but at the time he was cheap against the cap.

Paliinka has to be on the hot seat

The Laker Kid · Post #7 » by **The Laker Kid** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 6:48 pm

I love it. If Westbrook has a twin we'll sign him too!

DickMotta4Prez · Post #8 » by **DickMotta4Prez** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 7:30 pm

Gotta love the hubris of LeBron destroying the Lakers future to build a team he can't wait to leave

Hope that COVID chip brings the fandom some comfort as LAL were leapfrogged by NOLA

Barcs · Post #9 » by **Barcs** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 9:15 pm

47.1m is insane money. He'd be a fool to opt out.

deeps6x · Post #10 » by **deeps6x** » Tue Jun 28, 2022 9:41 pm

tigerae wrote:
rgm70 wrote:I am a laker for life and am grateful for Lebron bringing us a title in 2020, but this Westbrook fiasco is all on him. Lebron forced the lakers FO's hand with this trade. Two wasted years. Sorry Lebron, but you did this to us.

As Laker fans we are spoiled by the amount of championships that the team has where some fans don't really value a championship as much anymore. Teams like the Kings, Cavs, Clippers and so on would give anything just for 1 championship.

LeBron has been the most consistent superstar, even at his age, for the Lakers. Their record without him on the floor is abismal. AD is a overhyped superstar imo, especially since they won a championship. He plays soft, causing injuries due to that and can't dominate to win games even against bad teams. Shaq and Kobe were both able to carry the load when the other was out in spurts. AD just doesn't seem to have that type of drive.

The other issue I have is Vogel. Russ was handicapped from the beginning by Vogel's system. He tried to fit in but the system set him for failure from the beginning. AD has no business pushing the ball up or going one on one at the 3pt line, yet Vogel was fine with that. Not only did that make AD tired and less effective, it took the ball out of Russ' hands. He should be in the post or setting picks, that's it. I want the AD from his NO days where he was a monster 20 feet and in. All the team had to do was watch lots of film on the Heat's LBJ, Wade and Bosh trio and basically copy that game plan.

Lastly, the front office has been horrible since LeBron got here. His first year they decided to surround him with playmakers instead of shooters. LeBron wanted Lue yet they botched that by offering him only a 2 year deal and forcing Kidd on the coaching staff. They had things in place to bring DeRozan and Heild but instead got Russ. Maybe LeBron had some say there, but in the end this front office makeup wanted the big name, too. If LeBron had any actual influence on the FO Lue would have been hired instead of Vogel or Mark Jackson now instead of Ham.

If anything, I think the FO is ruining the last years of LeBron's career, but he did want to go to the Lakers even with the Buss kids nonsense. He had other options, like the Clippers, who had a much better roster and front office to get him multiple chances at championships.

Teams like the Kings, Cavs, Clippers and so on would give anything just for 1 championship.

Your inclusion of the Cavs baffles me. Are you 13? It wasn't that long ago that LeB got them a title.