Big trade news in the NBA on Wednesday as reports note that a three-team deal involving the Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, and Minnesota Timberwolves is going down and being finalized, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The deal is huge and includes big-name players like Russell Westbrook, D’Angelo Russell, and Mike Conley, along with draft picks and a ton of protected assets. All players involved have been notified about the trade, including Westbrook who was just reported to have had a heated exchange with his coach in the Lakers game versus the OKC Thunder on Tuesday night.

The Los Angeles Lakers will and Minnesota’s D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, and Jarred Vanderbilt. The Timberwolves will receive guards Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker and picks, while the Jazz will receive Russell Westbrook, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Damian Jones and a lightly protected 2027 Lakers first-round pick, sources said.

The key storylines of this trade are that the Lakers have found a way to offload Westbrook’s $47.1 million contract. They had to part with one of their available future first-rounders. but it rids of the team of some unneeded drama. Westbrook has been better under new head coach Darvin Ham, but this was a contract and a player the organization no longer wanted. This is the fourth time the 34-year-old Westbrook has been traded since 2019 after spending his first 11 years with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Jazz are expected to pursue a buyout with Westbrook once the trade is official, tweets Chris Hayes of Bleacher Report. He also reports that the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Clippers are interested in signing Westbrook should he secure a buyout with the Jazz. The Miami Heat might also show interest.

For the Timberwolves, Russell was heading into the final year of his deal and the Anthony Edwards was emerging as the shooting guard that would be taking an increased role. Minnesota decided to move in another direction. Conley, 35, is a veteran point guard averaging 10.7 points per game this season. It’s the lowest since his rookie season.

For the Jazz, this is about their future. Wojnarowski writes, “The Jazz have assembled a massive package of assets — including 15 unprotected or lightly protected first-round picks through 2029 and a young core of Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kesslier, Collin Sexton and Ochai Agbaji and $60M-plus in potential cap space.”

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