Rajon Rondo was the latest big name to find a new home and unfortunately, it was not Los Angeles as the Boston Celtics moved him to the Dallas Mavericks. Reportedly, the Lakers refused to include injured rookie Julius Randle in a package for the former All-Star.
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Despite the Lakers’ failure to bring in another star, Kobe Bryant told USA Today’s Sam Amick that the Lakers front office is making an effort, even though he admitted some disappointment that Rondo isn’t a Laker:
Of course. Of course. But all you can do is control what you can control. We did our part. We did what we could…It’s not from a lack of effort. It’s not from a lack of smarts, so I trust the process. It’s hard going through this (expletive), but our management will figure it out.”
Bryant also reiterated his trust in the Lakers front office to turn things around:
I really do trust management,” he reiterated to USA TODAY Sports. “I mean I really, really do. They’ll get things turned around pretty quickly. I’m not really concerned about that.”
The Lakers have been very cautious in their pursuit of another star player. They ultimately believed the asking price for Rondo was too high and refused to part with their brightest young building block.
As other big names become available, the Lakers will likely feel around, though with a lack of assets to trade, a big move could more likely be made in free agency. The Lakers have been diligent about not making moves for the sake of making moves, which is the best way to go about this.
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