Report: Rob Pelinka Lied About LeBron James, Anthony Davis’ Trade Input

What happened in Los Angeles? The front office had to make some changes, but the situation remained the same. Head coach Frank Vogel will move on with the same roster. Probably. There’s a really tricky situation revolving around Rob Pelinka and the fact that he probably lied about the trade talks with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Yes, Pelinka told the media that he spoke to both superstars about trade ideas before the deadline. Well, he didn’t actually do that. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin was among the first to report about this. Did Pelinka really lie?

According to McMenamin’s report, Pelinka didn’t talk to LeBron and Davis regarding potential trade moves. It’s kind of strange because the Lakers general manager told everyone that he consulted his superstars.

“Rob Pelinka also said that ultimately, there was alignment between him, LeBron James and Anthony Davis to not make a move,” McMenamin said on NBA Today. “Now, things get interesting here, where I am told from a source familiar with LeBron and Anthony’s thinking is that that is ‘totally false.’ There was no conversation between Rob Pelinka, LeBron and Anthony Davis on Thursday. There was no go-ahead of an okay to have inaction at the deadline.

“And so where things stand right now, that tells me that there’s not just problems from what you’re seeing on the court, with the Lakers losing six out of eight, but there’s problems off the court between an alignment, as Rob Pelinka termed it, and his leaders on this team.”

Reports suggest Rob Pelinka lied about trade deals

The Lakers really need new names to fix the roster. They have a bad record and Russell Westbrook is not a good fit for the team. Simple as that. He struggled to build great connection with his teammates. In other words, the Lakers had to make a move. Why didn’t they trade him? The Houston Rockets had an offer, but Pelinka really wanted to keep his draft picks.

The Lakers really had a chance to pull out a deal involving Talen Horton-Tucker, but it didn’t happen.