NBA Free Agency: Grading all 30 teams on signings and trades

2021 NBA Free Agency Grades: Los Angeles Lakers

Get comfortable, this will take a while.

Key Additions: Russell Westbrook (trade); Kendrick Nunn (2-yr, $10 million); Dwight Howard (1-yr, minimum); Malik Monk (1-yr, minimum); Trevor Ariza (1-yr, minimum); Kent Bazemore (1-yr, minimum); Carmelo Anthony (1-yr, minimum); Wayne Ellington (1-yr, minimum)

Brought Back: Talen Horton-Tucker (3-yr, $32 million)

Key Departures: Kyle Kuzma (trade to Washington); Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (trade to Washington); Montrezl Harrel (trade to Washington); Alex Caruso (Chicago); Andre Drummond (Philadelphia); Markieff Morris (Miami)

Let’s start with the signings, and circle back to the trade. Armed with just the taxpayer midlevel exception and minimum contract slots, the Los Angeles Lakers went into free agency with a plan and executed it. They added veteran wings, shooting and young guards with upside and something to prove.

Kendrick Nunn got squeezed out by the cap machinations of the Miami Heat to acquire Kyle Lowry and re-sign Duncan Robinson. He is miscast as a starting point guard but is an excellent option as a backup to Russell Westbrook. The Lakers added shooting with Malik Monk, who could be one of the steals of the offseason, Kent Bazemore and Wayne Ellington. Bazemore also pairs with Trevor Ariza to provide wing defense. Carmelo Anthony is worth the minimum as another shot creator and an improved shooter.

The Lakers decided to prioritize Talen Horton-Tucker while letting Alex Caruso go. Horton-Tucker has point guard skills on offense while his phenomenal wingspan can let him guard up the lineup. Caruso, however, is indicative of what this team lost: multiple key pieces of their elite defense from the past two seasons. This team will be hard-pressed to replicate that, especially with multiple pieces that are “either/or” shooting or defense.

Let’s circle back to the trade. The Lakers made a bet that the ball-handling, shot creation and general intensity of Russell Westbrook was not only more valuable than a shooter like Buddy Hield, but that it was worth giving up three rotation players, including Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and a first-round pick.

The bottom line is that all of the available evidence — all of it — tells us that bet won’t pay off. Westbrook has proven that no matter who his running mate is, he won’t commit to the off-ball work necessary to elevate his team’s chances of winning. He needs to ball to maniacally make his imprint on the game; without the ball, he’s a standstill spectator that defenses will be all too happy to leave open at the 3-point line.

Westbrook isn’t a good defender anymore, mixing a good nose for steals with inattentiveness off-ball. He is a poor fit on a team where LeBron James should have the ball most of the time, and especially when it counts. Add in Westbrook’s growing list of injuries and his monstrous contract, and this deal was a colossal mistake for the Lakers. They did a great job pivoting from there to fill out a roster, and because this team has LeBron James and Anthony Davis they will elevate the team as high as it can go.

That ceiling, though, is now lower than it was just two weeks ago. Trading for Westbrook was the single-worst move any team made this summer, and the fact that it happened for a contender means it will be the most impactful as well.

Grade: Trade (F) and Signings (B+) = D+