According to a report from ESPN, Jerry West laughed at the Los Angeles Lakers for trading Ivica Zubac to the LA Clippers at the trade deadline.
According to a report from ESPN, LA Clippers’ consultant Jerry West laughed at the Los Angeles Lakers after they traded Ivica Zubac.
The Clippers got their starting center in a trade that was regarded by many as a complete steal. They only gave up Mike Muscala, an afterthought from the trade that sent Tobias Harris to Philadelphia.
According to the report, the Clippers had not even contacted them about the 21-year-old. Instead, the Lakers reached out to the Clippers and made the offer, which the Clips front office accepted.
Later that evening, West (a former Laker himself), along with friends who were connected to the Lakers one way or another, met for dinner. It was at this dinner that he and his friends laughed at the ineptitude of the Lakers.
Contrasting the two team’s front office moves has been a pastime of many LA Clipper fans this season. While the Lakers did land LeBron James in the summer, the only big move the Clippers made was to trade away one of their best players near the deadline. Many expected the addition of James to push the Lakers right back into the playoffs and for the Clippers to miss, but the roles remained as they have for the greater part of the last decade.
On Tuesday, the Clippers clinched a playoff berth only days after the Lakers were mathematically eliminated. The difference in success this season will only be magnified this summer when both franchises vie for a superstar in free agency. There is a case to be made for free agents to pick the Clips over the Lakers, with the aptitude of the front office being a main focus.
The addition of Zubac, along with the addition of Landry Shamet, Garrett Temple, Wilson Chandler and JaMychal Green at the trade deadline just added to an already deep roster that is only missing a superstar in order to be perceived as a real contender.
If the Clippers are able to land that superstar this summer and the Lakers cannot, Jerry may just have to get his buddies back together to share another laugh.