Trade Deadline – Watch Out You Might Get Bit

Trade Deadline you can be a buyer, a seller or what ever it was the Lakers were trying to do this year.  Not completely sure who was at fault on what happened here.  It could just be that the Pelicans decided they were not ready to make a dea.  There were reports that Magic did not talk to the Pelicans after the initial offer.     The last offer that was known for sure was a trade that includes Kyle Kuzma, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Rajon Rondo, Lance Stephenson, Michael Beasley and two first-round picks in exchange for Davis and Solomon Hill.  The last part was probably more to satisfy trying to match salary as much as possible.  Maybe he would have been a good fit for short term but at $13 million it would not have been a long term stay.

Pelicans Passed on a Good Deal

That is not a bad deal for the Pelicans.  Get some promising players back and the two first round picks.  More than likely those picks would have been late first rounders so more than likely not going to be a super star.  Stil with the players in the trade and the picks they would have the ability to build a team.  What is unknown in this is Davis.  Did he have any input in where he would be going.  I would think that he would have not been asked his opinion.  He is the one that asked for the trade.  Since he still has a year left on his current contract the Pelicans do not have to be in any hurry to get this done.

Davis is a Special Player

It could be to their benefit to see how many teams will get involved.   With a player like Davis they don’t come along very often.  To get him would help any team.  For the Pelicans the more teams involved the better it will be for them.  The question here is how long do they wait?   If they wait too long to make this trade or they keep thinking that they might get just a little bit better offer.  They could blow this and the offers could start to go in the other direction.

Lakers Swing and Miss

Back to the Lakers.   The way the trade proposals played out.  It has killed any kind of team chemistry that this team had.  Granted they were not very good when LeBron was hurt.  They lost is some frustrating and sad ways.  In the wins they did show some promise. The young core probably could have grown into an alright set of roll players for LeBron.   That is not what he wants.  He does not want Luke Walton as the coach either.  There is little doubt that this team will be gutted this off season.  Walton will be let go.  Does it really matter who they replace him with?  I say NO.  It is pretty clear that LeBron is coaching the team anyway.   It really does not make much sense why he cares who the coach is then.

This year is a Bust Now

What is clear to me.  The Lakers are done for this season.  They will not make the playoffs.  If they do manage to make the playoffs somehow.  It will more then likely be as the eight seed.  Which at this point is the Warriors.  That would assure us of a LeBron vs Warriors match up for the 5th year in a row.  It would just not be in the finals this time.

We may never know what really happened with this deal.   The Pelicans passed up on a huge haul.   The could get a better deal but that will remain to be seen.  What is clear is that the Lakers swung and missed.  Big Time.  I am sure this is a missive blow to their plans.   Of course if they hit in the off season with Durant then this will be a distant memory.

*****Update

After posting this last night.  The Lakers went to Boston and beat the Celtics in a close game.   Making it look like they are not going to be giving up as a team.  Maybe this is real.  Maybe this one game took all their energy for the rest of the year.  Time will tell.  It will be interesting to see what happens.