It was previously reported that Houston wanted the Lakers 2027 first-round pick in exchange for taking on Westbrook’s contract. ESPN’s Ramona Shelbourne reported on an episode of the Hoop Collective that was not the case at the deadline. “The way I heard it was, it could’ve been done for a first round pick, but then, it was even suggested they could have done it for a pick swap. I don’t know the details of what that swap would be like or how it would even work.”