The Lakers were among the primary talking points amidst all the NBA trade rumors this year. Much of the conversation surrounded a possible deal involving Dejounte Murray and D’Angelo Russell, but other names like Andre Drummond and Tyus Jones also popped up.
In the end, the Lakers kept their roster as is as vice president and general manager Rob Pelinka showed a level of restraint by not making a move just to say he did.
What do fans think, though? According to our latest SB Nation Reacts poll, the Lakers performed well by not performing at the trade deadline performance.
Based on the rumors and Pelinka explaining why the Lakers didn’t make any moves, fans graded the Lakers high. With Russell playing so well of late and given the risk factor of trading someone who is maybe just marginally better, fans agree that the move to run it back was a good one.
It also helps that the Lakers are on a three-game winning streak and have won seven of their last ten games. With the insertion of Rui Hachimura back into the starting lineup and if Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent can return, perhaps this team can make a similar run as last year’s Lakers squad did.
Pelinka stressed focusing on a ball-handling guard via the buyout market and got his guy in Dinwiddie. The hometown player signed with the Lakers and has already played in a few games looking respectable in his few shifts with the team. Given the best buyout players available, it’s clear fans think Dinwiddie was a great signing, giving the Lakers an “A” on the move.
Based on what fans can expect from Dinwiddie and what he’s given the team already, it seems like a perfect fit. He can handle the ball, hit some 3-pointers and as long as he tries on defense, he’ll have a role and an impact for the Lakers.
Getting a guy of Dinwiddie’s quality via the buyout market is a win and fulfills a need this team lacked.
With the NBA All-Star game over and done, we head into the season’s final stretch as the Lakers look to make a playoff push. This is the roster they’ll have moving forward and fans graded the Lakers favorably regarding how they handled the trade deadline and the buyout market.
