Los Angeles Lakers Receive: G Patrick Beverley, F Josh Okogie, G Malik Beasley
Minnesota Timberwolves Receive: G Russell Westbrook
We’ll be honest. We don’t like this deal as much as the other one for either team. There needed to be a second deal. Sue us.
There are still ways to justify this one. For one thing, the Minnesota Timberwolves get to keep D’Angelo Russell. They’ll have a bit of a logjam in their guard rotation with the addition of Russell Westbrook. There may be a solution to that.
Like many teams who’d consider acquiring Westbrook may do, the Wolves could buy him out. Alternatively, they could simply sit him for the year. People don’t like to see healthy stars on the sidelines, but sometimes, that’s the best place for them to be for their current team.
The Wolves are swapping three rotation players for an expiring contract and a first-round pick here. It’s not the most inspiring move, but it could pay dividends when they have increased cap space for free agents moving forward. Sometimes, it’s worth taking a step back to take several steps forward.
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The Los Angeles Lakers can’t afford to make that calculation. Unlike the Minnesota Timberwolves, their core is aging. They need to be focused on winning in the present. With the addition of Beverley and Beasley, they may be able to get back to doing that.
