On June 29, Beijing time, according to Shams of the Athletic, Russell will exercise a player option of $18.7 million next season, and Hayes will exercise a player option of $2.4 million next season, both of which choose to stay with the Lakers. However, according to team reporter Buha, Russell is still difficult to really stay with the team, and he is likely to be the main bargaining chip for the Lakers in the next trade.
Russell said in an interview: "I love JJ Redick and I can really foresee me thriving under his guidance and helping the team win at a high level. Russell also said his first goal is to win the title.
Buha writes that Russell opted for the exercise option to return to the Lakers, but how long he can stay with the Lakers is another matter. Failing to send Russell away by the 2024 trade deadline, the Lakers are expected to continue to aggressively pursue a trade centered on Russell, according to league and team sources. Russell's expiring contract would be one of the Lakers' more valuable trade assets, especially for the purpose of matching salaries.
Last season, Russell averaged 18 points and 6.3 assists per game and played in 76 regular-season games, shooting a career-high 41.5 percent from three-point range. Russell hit 226 three-pointers for the Lakers, a franchise-record. However, he has seen a noticeable drop in playoff performance for two years in a row. In the series in which the Lakers lost 1-4 to the Nuggets in the first round, Russell averaged only 14.2 points and 4.2 assists per game, and his shooting percentage dropped from 45.6% in the regular season to 38.4% in the series, and his three-point shooting rate also plummeted to 31.8%.
Internally, the Lakers believe that the backcourt combination of Reaves and Russell has clearly reached the ceiling. Reaves is younger, defensively better than Russell, better in the playoffs, and he has a multi-year contract that benefits the team. So in between, the Lakers are clearly leaning toward Rureaves and sending Russell away. The Lakers did the same in the previous deadline-day negotiations involving Murray, where they were willing to send Russell away but refused to send Reaves away, causing the trade to fall through.
In the coming days and even weeks, the Lakers are expected to negotiate more trades, and they have two first-round picks (2029 and 2031), three first-round swaps (2026, 2028, and 2030), and nearly two first-round picks (Schifino and Knecht) that are their main draft assets and young players. The Lakers are interested in a lot of players, but what kind of trade will Pelinka make? Let's wait and see.