This was the special Free Agency information for this Wednesday evening: according to Adrian Wojnarowski ofESPN and Shams Charania of The Athletic, Jazz and Lakers have agreed to send Patrick Beverley to Los Angeles in exchange for Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson. Well, he’s not exactly the guy LeBron originally asked for, but he’s still better than nothing.
So Lakers Nation? You’ve been waiting for the Woj Bomb announcing the arrival of a new leader who is often talked regarding in Los Angeles for several weeks? Well your dreams have finally come true. Because this Wednesday evening, Adrian Wojnarowski ofESPN and Shams Charania of The Athletic got in tune to tell us that Kyrie Irving Patrick Beverley was going to land in the City of Angels. Hell of a hangover reading that, huh? Arrived at the Jazz a few weeks ago following being involved in the Rudy Gobert trade in Minnesota, the biggest mouth in the entire League must therefore once once more pack his bags for California, where he will probably meet Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson at the airport, so they are on their way back to Utah. Not just anyone, since LeBron’s band loses a fairly important element of the previous rosters in the person of THT despite a not crazy performance this season (10 points in 25 minutes on average over 60 games) and another less used ( 6.7 points in 23 minutes on average over 48 games last year) but which had been one of the rare satisfactions of the last months of 2021-22. And then let’s be honest, the transfer does not bode well for the Irving file, which the Lakers now seem to have almost abandoned. Will the addition of an experienced veteran like Beverley at least compensate for the loss of the two boys included in the trade? We ask to see, but on paper, there are arguments for it.
The Jazz are trading Patrick Beverley to the Lakers for Talen Horton-Tucker, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 25, 2022
Lakers and Jazz are expected to finalize the deal on Thursday morning, delivering Beverley to LA following a brief stayover with Jazz. No picks involved in the deal, per sources. https://t.co/s4FjjrHu4q
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 25, 2022
Already, Pat Bev will bring to this Los Angeles team in one of the sectors where it fished the most this season: defense. It must be said that it was not Russell Westbrook who was able to convince on this level, nor on any other for that matter, but that is another debate. Put him for example at the same time as Austin Reaves on the field, and you get a backcourt very interesting defensive for a second unit. As for offense, the boy is lucky not to be yet another ball handler in these Lakers, once once more keep our eyes on the same guy two lines up. FYI, it was running in 9.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.2 steals this season with the Wolves, thus helping them to return to the Playoffs, even if it was believed for one evening that they had outright won the title. Hard not to mention the fact that with this transfer, the LA front office also manages to free up a new spot, even if no clue has leaked when the players approached to occupy it. In his last year of contract, Patoche does not even represent a long-term risk on the administrative level and had moreover affirmed on several occasions his desire to one day play for the franchise. Wish granted for the veteran who will still have to prove that at 34, he still has as many guts in his stomach as sweet words in his mouth. Needless to say, moreover, that the latter has a history of litigation with… Westbrook. Definitely, even when he hasn’t asked anything, Russ still finds himself at the heart of the discussions.
Patrick Beverley is returning to LA — this time, with LeBron James and the Lakers pic.twitter.com/SHY6XGLIAa
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 25, 2022
If unfortunately the Lakers were to repeat the same disaster season as last year, we can already be reassured that with the arrival of Patrick Beverley, we will continue to have a good time with this franchise where dramas are now legion. The former Clippers guard has therefore gone over to the enemy, and if it was to destroy him from the inside? Nah we’re kidding. But imagine anyway.
Source texte : The Athletic / ESPN / Bleacher Report / NBA.com / Basketball Reference