Coming into the offseason, the Lakers had zero leverage when it came to Russell Westbrook. A disastrous season paired with a scorched Earth exit interview pushed the Lakers to the point where most of the league and fans assumed his days were done in purple and gold.
What has followed in the ensuing months can only be described either as a masterclass in the Lakers creating leverage out of nothing or one of the most perplexing decisions the team has made yet, a very high bar for this franchise.
In his article on the Lakers hiring of Darvin Ham on Friday, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported that the team had included integrating Russell Westbrook into the plans for next season a big part of their interviews with head coach candidates.