LA Lakers Rumors: Anthony Davis And Russell Westbrook To Unite In Los Angeles?

The Los Angeles Lakers are in the middle of a youth movement as they look to rebuild their team and start over from the ground up. They’re not opposed to trading away some veterans before the NBA trade deadline in a couple of weeks, but the focus is on the future. Well, getting some talented veterans on the roster wouldn’t hurt matters, and that is especially true if those veterans are Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook.

While some free agent signings couldn’t happen anytime soon due to contract obligations, there is always the possibility of a trade. Still, that would take a great deal of moving and shaking to make a blockbuster combination such as Davis and Westbrook to come together with the LA Lakers.

All of this is stemming from a Bleacher Report article which details how the New Orleans Pelicans have continuously let Davis down. As hard as he has tried to make the team a contender and be the franchise player he is destined to be, the organization has not done much to help him out.

While Brian Boyles of Bleacher Report may have a lot of valid points as to how little the Pelicans have done to help Davis, there is something far more interesting near the end of the article. It is there that Boyles looks at a rumor that could shape the future of the Lakers.

“Thad Foucher of the Wasserman Media Group, the same agency that represents Russell Westbrook, is Davis’ agent. A source close to Davis’ agent floated the possibility that the end game could find the two uniting in Los Angeles with the talent-starved Lakers. Those kind of rumors are the ones that expand into panic when a team flails like the Pelicans have in the last two seasons.”

Now, this is something that needs to be taken as nothing more than a rumor at this point, but it is quite an interesting one. Yes, the Lakers are looking to go young, but Russell Westbrook will only turn 29 this year while Davis is about to turn 24 in March.

No one can argue with their skills as Westbrook is averaging a triple-double this season with 31.2 points-per-game, 10.2 assists, and 10.5 rebounds. Davis is averaging 28 points-per-game, 12.1 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks.

Those numbers can’t be argued with, but there are some which can, and they have to do with the deals currently in place for both players.

Lakers Nation broke down things a bit and Westbrook is under contract with the Thunder through the 2017-18 season and there is also a player option on him which is worth $30.6 million. That’s a lot of money, but it also means it wouldn’t be impossible for the Lakers to bring him in soon.

Anthony Davis is another story.

As of now, the Pelicans have him locked up as he signed a five-year contract extension worth $145 million in the summer of 2015. Unless a team can come up with an amazing trade offer to send New Orleans’ way, he isn’t leaving the “Big Easy” until after the 2020-2021 season.

Now, just because Anthony Davis is locked into the Pelicans for a number of years and Westbrook is in with the Thunder for a while longer, anything is possible. If the new franchise office leaders want to make some big moves, all things can take place in the NBA.

There are a lot of rumors swirling about the LA Lakers right now, but most of those are focused on what they will do before the trade deadline this season. Looking ahead to the future, there is so much more that may actually be able to happen, and those things could change the entire look of the franchise. Anthony Davis is still with the New Orleans Pelicans and Russell Westbrook is still with Oklahoma City Thunder, but this is the NBA and anything can happen.

[Featured Image by Stacy Revere/Getty Images]