Lakers Rumors: Should LA Trade Anthony Davis?

Here's a better question: would it make this team much worse if they didn't?

During today's episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Ringer's Simmons and Kevin O'Connor discussed your Los Angeles Lakers' second straight Season From Hell.

Simmons reported that some chatter had insinuated that oft-injured 6'10" star big man Anthony Davis could be had in a trade. Frankly, given his escalating injury issues, one wonders what exactly the appetite for Davis is at this point.

"There’s some buzz, just some buzzing that AD might be available. That is a Plan B because the Westbrook trade, or what they can get for [Russell] Westbrook, whether you want to give future assets, maybe that doesn’t even make sense for the Lakers. You’ve got Davis here, who hasn’t looked the same in a couple of years. Certainly, not close to bubble Davis, that’s the last time we saw vintage, 2018 Pelicans-level Davis. This year he’s on the books for $37.9 [million], next year $40.6 [million], player option in 2025, $43.2 [million]. I don’t know what the endgame for this Lakers team is, but the Pelicans have their pick. I don’t think whatever they have, is not really fixable to make them a playoff team.”

This all starts with L.A.'s absolutely reckless decision to trade three good role players (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Kyle Kuzma, and Montrezl Harrell), plus a future first-round pick, in exchange for a very washed-up Russell Westbrook. It does appear that LeBron James and Anthony Davis pushed Pelinka and co. to make the deal that has completely capsized their franchise, perhaps thinking they could create a Miami Heat-esque Big Three so great that they could thrive no matter who else was on the roster. 

For someone who can read the floor so well and seems to have a photographic memory of every play in every game he's ever suited up for, it's a bit shocking that James so badly misjudged his on-court fit with Westbrook. Both players are at their best with the ball in their hands, but given that James is better than Westbrook, it makes the 6'3" veteran point guard something of a market inefficiency on the floor when the two are out there in tandem. Westbrook also is traditionally not much of a shooter. He has thrived since being moved to the bench, though paying one player $47.1 million to be a team's sixth man isn't exactly the best way to use your available cap room.

Just because James and Davis may have pushed for the Westbrook deal, that doesn't exactly absolve Pelinka and team governor Jeanie Buss of blame, when they certainly could have instead moved forward with the team's rumored deal for sharpshooter Buddy Hield -- or, better yet, re-signed Alex Caruso, kept Kyle Kuzma and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and preserve most of the roster with which the club won the 2020 NBA title.

The question is -- how good are James and Davis now, and how good will they be in the future? Should Los Angeles sacrifice future draft capital in moving on from Westbrook, and look to build around James and Davis? Or are they no longer good enough to be the top two players on a title team? Right now, they're looking like the top two players on a 30-win club for the second straight season.

Would a trade of Westbrook for role-playing depth improve that much? To an extent, yes. But if James and Davis are going to be this unidimensional (James on offense and Davis on defense), that may not elevate this club beyond being a play-in tournament level club (i.e. finishing as a 7-10 seed in the West).

So where do Simmons and O'Connor propose Los Angeles move Davis?

A trade to the Golden State Warriors (are also reeling right now with a 3-7 record), which Simmons has previously suggested, is mentioned again. Deals that would send Davis to the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, and Charlotte Hornets are also considered.