The Los Angeles Lakers are widely expected to trade Russell Westbrook this offseason. It’s also expected that any deal involving Westbrook will bring back long-term salary to Los Angeles.
Despite being rumored to have interest in trading Westbrook to the Charlotte Hornets, it’s unlikely the Lakers will take back Gordon Hayward in a deal. The Lakers are likely to prioritize players with cleaner injury histories, given the recent availability issues they’ve had with LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Hayward has missed 71 games of 154 games in his first two seasons with the Hornets. He also missed considerable time with the Boston Celtics over the prior three seasons.