With the Lakers reportedly unwilling to give up Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum, it leads some people to wonder why they traded Lamar Odom instead of saving him as a bargaining chip. Â Find out why they did it after the jump.
Lamar Odom requested the Lakers to trade him Friday, which was a driving force to them moving him in the deal to the Dallas Mavericks for a first-round pick, trade exception and other considerations in a deal not yet finalized.
The Lakers didn’t want a disgruntled Odom at his $8.9 million salary and believe they can acquire a new third big man to play behind Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. That is the challenge for Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss on the front-burner, while still simmering is their desire to have Dwight Howard from Orlando.
Why not hold on to Odom as a trade chip, particularly in ongoing pursuit of Chris Paul? The Hornets didn’t want Odom that badly either, and the Lakers were not unhappy to get some assets and financial savings from Dallas by parting with Odom, 32, despite him being projected to play 30-plus minutes per game this season for the Lakers.
It follows that teams most interested in Odom would be ones looking to win now — like the Mavericks … and the Lakers. So the deal, while saving Jerry Buss $18 million (counting luxury tax) for the moment, doesn’t appear to give the Lakers a better chance at winning the championship this year — hence Kobe Bryant’s anger Sunday at Odom to the Mavs: “We were supposed to get them back. Do I think we got too little? Who did we get? I don’t think Mark Cuban is protesting this trade.â€
