Getty Kyrie Irving of the Boston Celtics celebrates against the Indiana Pacers.
While trade rumors for Anthony Davis are hitting a peak right now, the Lakers still have heaps of cap flexibility and haven’t dialed back their hunt for a max salary free agent. Kyrie Irving was the Robin to LeBron’s Batman in Cleveland and the two have shown that at their best, they are a championship caliber duo.
Irving struggled with an injury his first year in Boston before putting up career numbers on a team that fell far short of expectations. With a roster that had a bit TOO heavy of a logjam, the Celtics were unable to find a cohesive rhythm throughout the season and as a result of the disappointing year, Irving seems to be looking for a new home. Brooklyn seems to be his preferred destination of choice, however, the Lakers still find themselves as the other destination that Irving seems to be considering at this time.
Lakers Have ‘Simple Route’ to Championship By Adding Kyrie Irving, Says Analyst
The road to a championship for the Lakers?
@Espngreeny says the answer is Kyrie Irving.
ESPN’s Get Up – “The Los Angeles Lakers have a path, for everything they’ve gotten wrong during this offseason – for all the mess that is going on in Los Angeles. There is a pretty simple route, in my opinion, to a championship in LA and that route is called Kyrie Irving. They don’t need to trade for Anthony Davis, they have a bunch of good young players in Los Angeles, and they have LeBron James – who is probably still the best player in the league.”
ESPN’s Mike Greenberg had a surprisingly rational take regarding the Lakers and their offseason moves. While obviously, a trade for Anthony Davis has been the focal point of this team since January, Greenberg suggests their easiest route to a championship is actually to avoid a trade altogether.
Claiming that the Lakers already have a strong supporting cast and “probably still the best player in the league” LeBron James in place, Greenberg thinks a trade is unnecessary. Given the decline of the Houston Rockets and injury to Kevin Durant, Greenberg thinks that keeping the band together and adding a proven complementary piece to LeBron is all the Lakers need to push them over the top.
Rich Paul Publicly Shred Dell Demps over Lakers-Pelicans Anthony Davis Trade Negotiations
Paul unloaded on former Pelicans’ GM Dell Demps in his recent interview with Sports Illustrated. Paul admits that the public war for Anthony Davis got out of hand but felt his actions were justified given the way Demps had been handling negotiations.
Sports Illustrated – “It was necessary to go public,” Paul says. “When I told you, ‘Here’s our intentions,’ and you say, ‘Hey, let me talk to ownership,’ and instead of you talking to ownership you call Anthony Davis? That’s called being ignored.” And trying to get between a player and his agent? “That’s a no-no,” Paul says. “Every GM knows that.”
With Demps now out of the picture and the Lakers at the center of nearly every single Davis rumor, it seems that Paul ended up pulling the right strings as Anthony Davis to the Lakers becomes an increasingly real possibility.