The Russell Westbrook situation has shined a bright light on just how much the Los Angeles Lakers and other NBA teams spend on their stars.
The franchise has attempted to trade Westbrook during this summer but no other team was willing to take him.
It wasn’t just because Westbrook had a lackluster season in 2021-22.
Instead, his hefty price tag is what drove others away.
Highest paid players on the Lakers next season pic.twitter.com/uXbOFY4nmj
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) September 14, 2022
Looking at the Lakers’ payroll, you can see clearly just how pricey the players are.
Westbrook will cost the team $47 million next season, while LeBron James will fetch $44 million.
Anthony Davis is going to pull in $37 million in the 2022-23 season.
Following him, the next highest-paid player is Patrick Beverley with $13 million and everyone after that is in single digits.
This proves that the Lakers are spending big and putting most of their money behind a few All-Stars while the rest of the team gets by on far less.
Is this a smart management decision?
Spending More On Less?
No matter what you think of Westbrook, you have to admit that he wasn’t worth $47 million last year.
Yet, the team agreed to a monster contract when they traded for him over a year ago – and now they are on the hook for millions more.
Some fans argue that that money would have been better spent on smaller, lesser-known stars.
Imagine if the roster didn’t have Westbrook but instead was home to more up-and-comers with smaller contracts – and lots of potential.
The win-now mentality of the Lakers cost them tons and it resulted in disaster.
Sadly, most people agree that LA will make a mistake like this again.
NEXT: LeBron James Shows Off A Hidden Talent