Virtually every single rumor leading up to the night of the 2021 NBA draft indicated that the Lakers were looking for a playmaking point guard to shoulder some of LeBron James’ load after the Dennis Schröder experiment ended in disaster for both sides. So when the Lakers were presented with a chance to trade for Russell Westbrook, they killed a separate deal for Sacramento Kings sharpshooter Buddy Hield at the last minute in order to reroute those players to the Washington Wizards for Westbrook.
And for as neatly as Hield’s skillset would have fit next to James and Anthony Davis, both James and the Lakers’ front office reportedly preferred to add a playmaker all along.