Podcast: Were the Lakers right in not trading for Kawhi Leonard?

Magic Johnson has watched firsthand as the Los Angeles Dodgers have gone from an organization largely lacking in assets to one of MLB’s absolute powerhouses. That growth started at the lower level and, as that’s been the case, the success is that much more sustainable than had Andrew Friedman cut corners for immediate gains.

In not trading a large portion of their assets for Kawhi Leonard without necessarily having to, despite employing LeBron James, the Los Angeles Lakers might be learning from the baseball team he owns. On today’s Locked on Lakers, Pete and I discuss the various levels to this entire situation and explain why we think the Lakers made the smart play by remaining patient.

We start by discussing the trade itself. I’m not a fan. The San Antonio Spurs traded away a top-five NBA talent and might not gain a first-round pick in doing so. That’s insane. Add to that their having to unload Danny Green’s expiring deal instead of Pau Gasol’s longer, more expensive contract, not landing either OG Anunoby or Pascal Siakam and also taking back DeMar DeRozan’s bloated deal and antiquated game and, man, what a disaster for the Spurs.

Pete’s a little higher on the trade than I am, though we agree that it does say quite a bit about why the Lakers never seemed to seriously factor into legitimate trade talks. If the Spurs were indeed looking for a means to remain in playoff contention, the Lakers couldn’t top this offer.

As nice as it would’ve been to have Leonard on the Lakers right now, the Spurs’ demands were asinine and their desire to hold off an inevitable rebuild is beyond the Lakers’ control.

The conversation builds from there to discuss where the Lakers currently sit, as well as where they go from here. They’re in a pretty great spot.

As always, this is just a tidbit of the full context given in the show. Listen to the full discussion below and please check out old episodes or guarantee you won’t miss any ever again by subscribing on iTunes.