zuju wrote:Most Fans want some significant improvement to the roster. I am the same too. Suitable players or trades don't come around easily these days. We have no cap space and no roster spots to manipulate anything right now.
The biggest hit to me would be Big V signing to a reasonable deal elsewhere when LBJ was willing to sacrifice to open up the MLE. I am not sold on Thomspon (Not the same splash brother Thompson) or DDR (too expensive over too long period).
Shall we trade Cam Reddish, Wood and Hayes with some SRPs to open up a roster? If yes, for who?
Gary Trend Jr was a sensible one to replace Cam. We can't guarantee him a starting spot though. I would sign Gordon Hayward as back up SG/SF if Cam is somehow moved.
Makelle Fultz and Dennis smith Jr can replace Dlo / Vincent if a move is made to acquire a Centre.
I want the Lakers to do something fast. I know patience is needed on the other hand.
Pelinka isn't much of a visionary. He doesn't have much of an eye for making pieces fit. Is he a complete idiot? No, but he's not a creative, intuitive roster constructor.
The Westbrook trade was god-awful. What was I thinking? This move alone shows his lack of vision. I don't really care that Davis and James wanted this move. It's Pelinka's job to make these decisions. Frank Vogel had zero chance of fitting Westbrook, James, and Davis into a cohesive lineup, and Pelinka should've saw that coming before it actually happened.
There are several other failed moves I could mention, but one small detail which further illustrates his lack of vision is his negligence in signing a proper center last summer. Fresh off a sweep by the Nuggets where big Jokic dominated, it was clear as day the Lakers needed a big-body center to throw at Jokic. His response to this need was to sign Jaxon Hayes, which tells he didn't even see the need. Fast forward to today and all of a sudden he realizes they need a big-body center. It took him a year to see what this team lacked, and to make it all a thousand times worse, he hamstrung this roster by giving out not one, not two, but three player options for minimum guys. Again, absolutely no vision for what lies ahead of for what this team needs.
These are all fireable offenses.
As far as right now, I believe Pelinka is back in the same position he was in when trying to dump Westbrook. He just has a new Russell.
Like with Westbrook, every team smells Pelinka's desperation. Like with Westbrook, the Lakers have two coveted picks at their disposal. Like with Westbrook, every team the Lakers call want those picks, so the market is bare.
They are trying to make trades, but they are calling for the wrong dudes and/or teams are asking for too much.