Lakers Rumors

Report: Buddy Hield, Kyle Kuzma and Montrezl Harrell were ‘blindsided’ when Kings and Lakers trade fell through

Published by
Justin Benjamin

The Los Angeles Lakers punted on their trade discussions with the Sacramento Kings and agreed to a blockbuster trade with the Washington Wizards for Russell Westbrook on Thursday.

However, Kings guard Buddy Hield and Wizards newcomers Kyle Kuzma and Montrezl Harrell were surprised by the rapid action that unfolded.

“Almost everyone that I could talk to that was involved in the potential Buddy Hield-Kings trade was kind of blindsided when it fell apart at the end,” ESPN’s Zach Lowe reported on his podcast.

The Lakers were in on talks to acquire Hield ahead of the draft.

As a matter of fact, they reportedly added their prized 2021 first-round pick to strengthen their offer. The Kings had the choice of picking between Kuzma or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

According to Jason Jones of The Athletic, all the players involved in the Kings-Lakers talks believed the trade was going to happen.

“League sources said all the players involved in the much-discussed Lakers-Kings deal expected that trade to happen,” Jones wrote.

Yet, things appeared to fizzle out as the draft got closer.

Then, the Lakers agreed to send Kuzma, Harrell and Caldwell-Pope and the No. 22 pick to the Wizards for Westbrook and two future second-round picks.

On Friday, Kuzma thanked the Lakers in a classy social media post.

Justin Benjamin

Justin’s enormous respect for LeBron James has ignited him to write for the King and Lakers. His all-around analysis and heart for the game has made him a stellar NBA writer and proud staff writer for Lakers Daily.

Published by
Justin Benjamin

Recent Posts

Shaq goes after Joel Embiid for not playing back-to-backs: ‘This era’s not physical’

Hall of Famer and former Los Angeles Lakers center Shaquille O’Neal isn’t a fan of…

November 24, 2024

Russell Westbrook’s petty reaction after helping the Nuggets blow out the Lakers

Denver Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook took to Instagram to seemingly celebrate Denver’s massive win over…

November 24, 2024

J.J. Redick speaks on whether Lakers were ‘haunted’ mentally by Nuggets

Los Angeles Lakers head coach J.J. Redick doesn’t believe that the Lakers’ previous issues against…

November 24, 2024

Ex-Lakers guard tells Julius Randle to ‘pass the damn ball’ following ugly sequence involving Rudy Gobert

In the fourth quarter of the Minnesota Timberwolves' loss to the Toronto Raptors on Thursday,…

November 22, 2024

5-time NBA champion says ‘no real fans care’ about Lakers’ success in NBA Cup

The Los Angeles Lakers have started their NBA Cup schedule off on the right foot…

November 21, 2024

LeBron makes stunning announcement as he takes step back on social media

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James uploaded a screenshot of a social media post on…

November 20, 2024