Lakers: Did Frank Vogel Hint at a Russell Westbrook Trade?

LA's head coach had a very interesting answer to a question on Wednesday night.

Russell Westbrook's first missed game of the year may be his last in purple and gold. Westbrook sat court-side in ordinary clothes as the Lakers lost in devastating fashion to a young, seemingly toothless Blazers team 107-105 on Wednesday night. Russ was sidelined with lower back tightness. He had no impact on the game, but the game could have huge impact on him.

All throughout this disappointing season there’s been report and rumors of the Lakers trading Russell Westbrook as the Lakers have piled up losses. Today’s trade deadline (12PM PST) looms large.

In the post game presser in Portland, head coach Frank Vogel was asked about the possibility of Westbrook being traded away.

"If there's way to improve our team, we'll improve our team. I've got nothing else to say about the trade deadline.”

Whoa.

Couldn’t Vogel have said just said, “I have nothing to say about the trade deadline”? Why didn’t he stonewall the question and publicly support a struggling Westbrook?

Vogel’s not the general manager. He didn’t construct the roster. Vogel isn’t the one who traded for Westbrook. He’s not working the phones through the night surviving on Nespresso and DoorDash alone.

But does the frustrated Lakers head coach know something we don’t?

Perhaps Vogel was just mindlessly reciting the company mantra ?

Or perhaps, it was an honest response from a coach who probably feels like the last three months have lasted a decade. Vogel, Westbrook, and the Lakers are 26-29. Losing to one of the worst teams in the league might be the final straw for Lakers GM Rob Pelinka and Senior Basketball Advisor Kurt Rambis.

There’s no doubt that Westbrook has been the ill-fitting piece alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

The problem is, Westbrook’s massive contract significantly handcuffs the Lakers abilities to find a trade partner for him.

Pelinka and Rambis would have to be very, very aggressive in order to get a team to take on Westbrook’s contract.

That could be including their 2027 first-round pick, which could be quite valuable, along with the only two rotation players that have significant trade value: Talen Horton-Tucker and Malik Monk.

Time will tell, but the Lakers could do something drastic before the deadline.