The Los Angeles Lakers are expected to find a new starting point guard in the 2021 offseason. Dennis Schroder may have expressed his desire to return to the Lakers but with his dismal performance in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, it remains a big question mark if they are willing to throw away a huge amount of money to re-sign him in the 2021 free agency.
If Schroder asks for more than what they could offer, the Lakers may think that they are better off searching for a new floor general this summer.
One of the potential offseason targets for the Lakers is veteran point guard Kemba Walker of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Though he's just recently traded to the Thunder, nobody is expecting Walker to stay long in Oklahoma City. With the team currently in the initial phase of the rebuilding process, keeping an aging and injury-prone point guard no longer makes any sense for the Thunder.
With the Thunder highly expected to make Walker available on the trading block again, Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated said in a recent appearance on ESPN's The Jump, via Youtube, that the Lakers should explore the possibility of bringing him to Los Angeles this summer.
“If I’m the Lakers, why not try to go after Kemba?" Spears said, as quoted by OKC Thunder Wire. “To me, it makes a lot of sense. Kuzma already looks like he’s on his way out.”
With his health issues and lucrative contract, the Thunder aren't expected to demand a massive haul for Walker. According to Logan Newman of OKC Thunder Wire, the trade package centered on Kyle Kuzma would be enough to convince the Thunder to send Walker to the Lakers this summer.
However, the complicated part of the deal is matching Walker's massive salary. To make the deal work under the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, the Lakers would also have to sacrifice the likes of Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Marc Gasol, and Alfonzo McKinnie.
Trading for Walker would be a huge gamble for the Lakers. If he fails to live up to expectations, they would be carrying a huge financial burden over the next two years. However, if Walker could regain his 100 percent healthy and return to the Charlotte Hornets version of himself, sacrificing Kuzma for him would make a lot of sense for the Lakers.
Having the Hornets' version of Walker would fulfill the Lakers' dream of adding a third star, give them a major upgrade at the starting point guard position, and boost their performance on the offensive end of the floor. In his final season in Charlotte, Walker averaged 25.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 1.2 steals while shooting 43.4 percent from the field and 35.6 percent from beyond the arc, per ESPN.
Walker would definitely love the idea of being traded to the Lakers this summer. Instead of wasting a season on a rebuilding team like the Thunder, joining forces with LeBron James and Anthony Davis in Los Angeles would give him a realistic chance of making his first appearance in the NBA Finals and capturing his first Larry O'Brien Trophy in the 2021-22 NBA season.
Playing for a title contender that could give him playing time and a significant role on the offensive end of the floor would help Walker rebuild his value and prove to everyone in the league that he still has plenty of gas left in his tank.
